Amid heightened tensions across West Asia, widespread Iran protests and US President Donald Trump’s latest announcement to add India to join Gaza ‘Board of Peace’, President of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan (MBZ) visited New Delhi for just around 3 hours. However, his short visit has been described as substantive by the Ministry of External Affairs.
On his arrival on Monday afternoon (January 19, 2026), Prime Minister Narendra Modi personally went to the airport to receive MBZ Al, setting the tone for what has been called a brief but highly consequential visit, underscoring the exceptional warmth and strategic depth of India–UAE relations.
The visit, undertaken at the invitation of the Prime Minister, comes at a time of intense diplomatic activity in West Asia, lending added geopolitical significance to the UAE leader’s stop in New Delhi.
UAE President’s India visit: PM Modi welcomes his ‘brother’
Taking to social media platform X, Prime Minister Modi described the UAE President as “my brother”, saying the visit reflected the importance MBZ attaches to the India–UAE friendship. Such a personal reception is seen in diplomatic circles as a rare and deliberate signal of trust between the two leaderships.
Later, Prime Minister Modi welcomed President MBZ and his family at his official residence on Lok Kalyan Marg, where the leaders continued discussions in both restricted and expanded formats.
Cultural diplomacy at Lok Kalyan Marg
As part of a traditional Indian welcome, PM Modi presented a series of symbolic cultural gifts highlighting India’s diversity and heritage. President MBZ was gifted a royal carved wooden jhula from Gujarat, intricately designed with floral motifs. The gift carried special resonance as the UAE has declared 2026 as the Year of Family, with the jhula symbolising togetherness and intergenerational bonding.
The Prime Minister also presented a handmade Kashmiri Pashmina shawl in an ornate silver box crafted in Telangana, while Sheikha Fatima bint Mubarak Al Ketbi was gifted a similar Pashmina along with Kashmiri saffron, prized globally for its quality and aroma.
“Committed to fostering sustainable development and economic growth, the UAE and India will continue working together to drive progress in future-focused sectors while achieving mutual benefit for our nations and peoples,” MBZ said.
Modi-MBZ talks: What did the leaders discuss
According to the MEA, the meeting between the two leaders went well beyond its scheduled two hours, extending past three hours and covering a wide range of bilateral, regional and global issues. The discussions were described by officials as substantive, setting the tone and direction of India–UAE relations in the near future.
“This has been a short but an extremely substantive visit. His highness was received at the airport personally by PM Narendra Modi which is a special gesture that is characteristic of the extremely warm and close relationship that the two leaders share,” Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri said.
President MBZ’s entourage included members of the royal families of Abu Dhabi and Dubai, along with senior UAE ministers and officials, reflecting the high priority Abu Dhabi places on ties with India.
Modi-MBZ meeting outcomes: Major announcements, MoUs
Among the major outcomes of the two leaders included Agreements across energy, railways, space and AI. The leaders reviewed progress across the full spectrum of cooperation and agreed on multiple new and ongoing initiatives spanning nuclear and energy cooperation, railways and space.
A key economic goal highlighted during the talks was the shared ambition to take bilateral trade to $200 billion by 2032. Both sides also identified artificial intelligence as a priority sector for future collaboration, with MBZ confirming UAE’s high-level participation in India’s upcoming AI Impact Summit.
Another landmark decision was to establish a “House of India” in Abu Dhabi, which would be a permanent cultural complex featuring a state-of-the-art museum showcasing India’s ancient civilisation and living traditions, envisioned as a lasting symbol of the partnership.
People-to-people ties at the core
With nearly 4.5 million Indians living and working in the UAE, the Indian diaspora remains a central pillar of bilateral ties. Prime Minister Modi expressed deep appreciation to President MBZ for the care and welfare extended to the Indian community, which is among the largest expatriate populations in the Gulf.
The leaders exchanged views on the evolving situation in West Asia and expressed full support for efforts to promote peace, security and stability in the region. They also unequivocally condemned cross-border terrorism, calling for all perpetrators, supporters and financiers of terror to be brought to justice.
MBZ expressed support for India’s chairmanship of the BRICS grouping this year, further underlining the strategic alignment between the two countries at multilateral forums. “They unequivocally condemned crossborder terrorism and for the perpetrators, supporters and financiers of all acts of terrorism to be brought to justice. The UAE president expressed his support for the success of India’s chairmanship of the BRICS grouping this year,” Misri underlined.
India-UAE relations: High-level engagement reflects strategic trust
This marks Sheikh Mohamed’s third official visit to India as UAE President and his fifth visit in the past decade, highlighting the frequency and depth of top-level engagement between New Delhi and Abu Dhabi.
India–UAE relations have seen sustained momentum across political, economic and defence domains. Earlier this month, Army Chief General Upendra Dwivedi visited the UAE to strengthen military cooperation, while External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar travelled to Abu Dhabi in December for the Joint Commission Meeting and Strategic Dialogue.
Backed by frameworks such as the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA), local currency settlement mechanisms and a Bilateral Investment Treaty, India and the UAE continue to expand cooperation at multilateral platforms including the UN, BRICS, I2U2 and the UAE–France–India trilateral.
UAE President’s short but successful India visit
According to the MEA, President MBZ’s short visit provided an opportunity to take stock of rapid progress and identify new avenues of cooperation amid shifting regional dynamics, thereby reinforcing the India–UAE partnership as one of India’s most consequential relationships in the Gulf and beyond.
MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal shared that the successful visit concluded with MBZ meeting External Affairs Minister Dr. S Jaishankar, who saw him off at the airport.
“The visit of President HH Sheikh Mohamed Bin Zayed led to significant outcomes and further deepening of comprehensive strategic partnership between India and UAE. He was seen off by EAM,” Jaiswal stated.