MEA spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said as a very special gesture, Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan and members of the Royal family came to the airport to meet and interact with Modi so that the PM did not have to go all the way to the city.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi made a brief stopover at Abu Dhabi on his way back from Germany and called on UAE President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan for what was the first in-person meeting between the two leaders since August 2019 when Modi last visited the UAE capital.
The PM conveyed his heartfelt condolences to Al Nahyan as well as his family members and congratulated him on his election as the third president of the UAE and on becoming the ruler of Abu Dhabi, the government said in a statement.