- Friday, April 19, 2024
By: Shubham Ghosh
INDIAN prime minister Narendra Modi’s scheduled visit to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in January 2022 has been deferred in view of the growing number of Omicron cases across the globe and the risks involved in international travel.
According to reports, Modi was scheduled to visit the Gulf nation on January 6 and was expected to meet its top leadership. The visit is being rescheduled due to the growing number of Omicron cases and it could take place in February.
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Modi has made three visits to the UAE after becoming the prime minister and they happened in 2015, 2018 and 2019.
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Previously, it was reported that Modi would visit the India Pavilion at the ongoing Dubai Expo which showcases the country’s culture, yoga, ayurveda, space programme, among others.
His visit was also rescheduled at a time when the two countries are looking to celebrate five decades of their diplomatic ties.
The India Pavilion at the expo was inaugurated by India’s trade and commerce minister Piyush Goyal in October and has been visited by a number of foreign dignitaries, including the foreign minister of Cyprus and the king of Sweden. Dignitaries from India and the UAE have also visited the pavilion.
India has decided to tighten its international travel guidelines in view of the spread of Omicron in a number of European nations. Many states of the country have also imposed night restrictions to prevent big public gatherings during Christmas and the New Year’s Eve in view of the surge.
