Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been honored with two prestigious state awards in a single day from monarchs in Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates.

The day began with the bestowment of UAE’s highest civil honor award – the Order of Zayed – which Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan placed on Modi’s neck for playing a “pivotal role” in strengthening bilateral ties, which last year reached new heights.

Humbled to be conferred the ‘Order of Zayed’ a short while ago. More than an individual, this award is for India’s cultural ethos and is dedicated to 130 crore Indians. I thank the UAE Government for this honour. pic.twitter.com/PWqIEnU1La — Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) August 24, 2019

Humbly accepting the honor, Modi dedicated the recognition of his work to all 1.3 billion Indians, over three million of whom live in the UAE. The bilateral trade volume last year grew by 20 percent to $59.9 billion, while Indian exports to UAE grew by seven percent to over $30 billion, partly because of the UAE’s free-trade zones.

Continuing his Persian Gulf tour, Modi flew to Bahrain, becoming the first Indian prime minister to visit the kingdom. During a royal welcome from King Salman Al Khalifa, the Indian leader received yet another award to add to his collection – the Order of the Renaissance – which he dedicated to the entire nation of India.

I humbly accept The King Hamad Order of the Renaissance. This is a recognition of India’s strong friendship with Bahrain, which goes back hundreds of years and is expanding rapidly in the 21st century. pic.twitter.com/Ct3zTIGZnx — Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) August 24, 2019

It is an honor for entire India. This is a symbol of the close and friendly relations between the Kingdom of Bahrain and India.

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