Indian president to arrive in Syria Friday

DAMASCUS - Indian President Pratibha Patil was due to arrive in Damascus Friday for talks with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, as part of a regional tour aimed at boosting New Dehli’s economic links with the Middle East.

Patil was coming straight from a five-day visit to the United Arab Emirates, which was India’s largest trading partner in the first half of 2010, according to official figures.

The two-country tour is Patil’s first official visit to the Middle East.

Speaking at the Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry Thursday, she stressed the need for mutual investment between the Middle East and India.

“While trade has been the bedrock of our economic partnership, strengthening the flow of foreign direct investment between the two countries can be another significant pillar of our relationship,” she said.

The primary goal of Patil’s four-day visit to Syria, she told the press before her trip, was also to encourage mutual investment opportunities.

She will also attend the opening of an Indian consulate in the northern city of Aleppo.

Patil’s trip comes at the invitation of al-Assad, who visited India in 2008.

In a sign of India’s deepening ties in the region Israel’s finance minister said his country would likely sign a free trade deal with India early next year.