India and the United Arab Emirates on Thursday deepened their fast-expanding strategic partnership with a strong push on artificial intelligence, advanced technology and investment, as Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan concluded a two-day official visit to India.
The Crown Prince was in New Delhi to participate in the AI Impact Summit, underscoring the growing centrality of technology and innovation in India–UAE relations. The visit marked his second official trip to India, following his September 2024 visit, and reflected the momentum of high-level exchanges between the two countries.
On the sidelines of the summit, Prime Minister Narendra Modi met Sheikh Khaled on February 19. The two leaders reaffirmed the importance of the India–UAE Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, which spans political engagement, economic cooperation, energy security, culture and strong people-to-people ties. They also recalled recent high-profile visits to India by UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan and other members of the Abu Dhabi and Dubai royal families, describing them as milestones that have added depth and trust to bilateral relations.
The leaders reviewed the "tremendous progress" achieved across sectors such as defence and security, trade and investment, education, and cultural cooperation. February 18, 2026, marked four years since the signing of the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA), a period during which bilateral trade and investment have recorded robust growth. Both sides expressed satisfaction over expanding two-way investment flows and encouraged UAE sovereign wealth funds to further increase their presence in the Indian economy. In this context, they acknowledged the potential role of L'Imad, the UAE's newest sovereign fund, in strengthening long-term economic cooperation.
Beyond trade and finance, discussions covered collaboration in strategic and future-oriented domains including space, nuclear energy, technology, and innovation, signalling a broadening of the partnership beyond traditional areas.
Several concrete initiatives were welcomed during the visit. India and the UAE finalised a Memorandum of Understanding between their health ministries aimed at cooperation in health and medicine. The agreement will promote professional exchanges, joint research, digital health initiatives, pharmaceutical collaboration, and the development of modern medical technologies for the benefit of citizens in both countries.
A key technology milestone was the finalisation of a term sheet between the Centre for Development of Advanced Computing, G42, and the Mohamed Bin Zayed University of Artificial Intelligence for the deployment of a supercomputer cluster in India. Announced earlier during the UAE President's January 2026 visit, the project will now move into the implementation phase. The supercomputer cluster will form part of the AI India Mission and will be accessible to public and private stakeholders for research, application development, and commercial use.
In the financial services sector, the setting up of an office of the Abu Dhabi National Insurance Company at Gujarat's GIFT City was also welcomed.
Sheikh Khaled congratulated Prime Minister Modi on the success of the AI Impact Summit. PM Modi, in turn, welcomed Switzerland's initiative to host the next AI Summit, to be followed by the UAE.
The visit reaffirmed the tradition of regular leadership-level engagement between India and the UAE and reinforced high-level political commitment to elevating AI and advanced technologies as a core pillar of the bilateral relationship.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a press release)
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