Bridging the Gulf

The visit of the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan served not only to strength­en areas of cooperation and trade centred around the des­ert kingdom’s role as a key energy supplier to India but also broke new ground that can bind the economies and geopoliti­cal interests of the two nations in an even closer embrace. The agreements and memorandums signed during the Crown Prince’s visit include cooperation in developing nuclear energy and exploring sources of critical minerals—apart from augment­ed LNG supplies and joint exploration of off-shore oil—decisions that will boost the technical knowhow of the United Arab Emir­ates (UAE) state corporations and further incentivise growth of bilateral relations that have progressed rapidly since Prime Minister Narendra Modi assumed office in 2014.

The MoU in nuclear cooperation is intended to facilitate In­dia’s involvement in the operation and maintenance of nuclear plants and sourcing of nuclear goods and services. “The MoU will set the stage for exploring mutual investment opportunities and capacity building,” the Ministry of External Affairs said. The deci­sion is significant as the energy trade has been a one-way street with UAE being a major provider of India’s needs and the MoU comes at a time when the Indian atomic energy programme is set to expand exponentially by developing technologies to construct and install medium modular and micro nuclear reactors. Nuclear collaboration is a new avenue that will improve UAE’s nuclear energy capacities and where India can contribute as a lead player rather than be a recipient of crude oil and LNG supplies.

The memorandum between UAE-based International Resourc­es Holding and Indian state-owned companies to strengthen the supply chain of critical minerals relates to India’s bid to expand access to minerals like tungsten, cadmium, tellurium, lithium, cobalt and strontium that are used in semi-conductors, solar, elec­tric vehicles (EVs), turbines, aerospace, and medical applications. The UAE firm has an impressive portfolio which the company de­scribes as extending to the entire mining value chain. The bilateral deliberations between Modi and Prince Khaled were followed by a meeting of the India-UAE business forum where the Indian delega­tion was led by Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal. The meeting in Mumbai saw the “soft launch” of the Virtual Trade Corridor (VTC) and the Master Application for International Trade and Regulatory Interface (MAITRI) platform that provides integration between Indian and UAE government and business processes. The VTC is seen as part of the ambitious India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC) connectivity and trade project unveiled by Modi and US President Joe Biden along with leaders from the European Union (EU), France, Germany, Italy and Saudi Arabia at the G20 summit held in Delhi in September 2023. While the IMEC vision faces challenges due to the war in Gaza, the VTC has the potential to reduce friction and increase trade between India and the Gulf—a peep into what the corridor can achieve.

The engagement highlighted the close ties that Modi has estab­lished with the Crown Prince’s father, King Mohamed, that has seen the prime minister become a frequent traveller to the Emirates. The inauguration of the BAPS Hindu mandir in February this year in UAE marked an important cultural and political moment as it is recognition of the needs of a large Indian community and won UAE goodwill in India. The sentiment of accommodation and amity represented by the temple’s construction reflects Modi’s success in building ties with the Gulf states, which are all Muslim coun­tries, despite the persistent criticism of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government by political and ideological opponents for being anti-Muslim. The communication and rapport Modi shares with Gulf leaders go well beyond the requirements of formal state-to-state relations. The investment in relations with the Gulf states has not only increased India’s energy security but also led to the return of wanted criminals and terror­ists holed out in UAE. The extra­dition of terrorists and middle­men facing corruption cases has seen the return of fugitives like Christian Michel, key accused in the UPA era AgustaWestland VVIP chopper scam. It is no surprise that Pakistan has on occasion vehemently opposed extradition of terrorists with di­rect links to its Inter-Services In­telligence (ISI) on the pretext that they are Pakistani nationals. It is significant that such ruses have failed to impress Gulf authorities.

At the time Prince Khaled ar­rived in India, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar was in Ri­yadh for the first meeting of the India-Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) ministerial and strategic dialogue attended by all the foreign ministers of the Gulf nations. The minister emphasised GCC is of vital significance to India as part of its “extended neighbourhood” and the nine million Indian expats who live in the region. Trade, investment, infrastructure and people-to-people contacts are the cornerstone of ties between India and the Gulf that contribute to a more stable and prosperous global economy, Jaishankar told the meeting. The expanding cooperation in trade, health, agriculture and transportation has strong strategic spin-offs. India’s economic and territorial security is directly impacted by the Gulf. For decades past, criminal and terror syndicates have used UAE as a base for their activities, eluding Indian law enforcement. Terror masterminds like Pakistan-based Dawood Ibrahim, and more recently other ranking members of the D Company, have used cities like Dubai to operate and run il­legal businesses. Things have changed and some of the key terror-criminal figures have been ‘repatriated’ to Pakistan with UAE no longer a recipient or safe venue. The sea lanes that run along the Yemen and Oman coasts along with the Red Sea and Persian Gulf lit­torals are critical corridors for India’s trade, not just in oil and gas. Stable relations with the Gulf states increase India’s security and ensure a prompt response to Delhi’s requests. The Indian Navy is a major security provider in the Arabian Sea from the Somalia coastline to the Persian Gulf, deterring pirates and terror activities, a contribution that does not go unnoticed in UAE and Saudia Arabia. In August, Qatari authorities seized two copies of the Guru Granth Sahib, allegedly due to two groups running a religious establishment without permission. One copy of the scripture was returned and the Qatari authorities assured that the other was being kept with due “respect”. A quick response to a seemingly small issue, but one that could inflame sen­timents, demonstrates a heightened sensitivity to India’s concerns.

India’s success in the Gulf has seriously blunted Pakistan’s ability to rally Islamic nations against India over issues such as Jammu & Kashmir and alleged anti-minority policies. The most telling impact of the changed equations was seen when Parlia­ment’s decision to do away with the special status of J&K under Article 370 and bifurcate the former state and reduce it to a Union territory did not elicit any criticism. More recently, UAE has been turning down a large number of visa applications from Pakistan, allegedly due to concerns that blue-collar workers are violating regulations by participating in political protests and sometimes soliciting for alms. The authorities in the Gulf nations are wary of the tendency of Pakistani nationals to become radicalised. Given their experience of the Islamic State that proved to be a lightning rod for Islamist extremists and saw donors from UAE pouring millions into the terror group’s coffers, Gulf nations are worried about radicalisation in Pakistani society and the influence of a network of Deobandi madrasas that preach hardline Islam. The stability in economic and foreign relations offered by the Modi government and a recognition that its third term marks continu­ity have increased confidence in the Gulf that engagement with India will be consistent and not subject to abrupt changes of rules.

The discussions in Riyadh, Delhi and Mumbai are indicators that the Modi government’s leverage has not decreased despite BJP not reaching a majority mark in Lok Sabha on its own. In fact, recent weeks provide evidence that India’s diplomatic out­reach has gathered momentum with Modi’s upcoming visit to the United Nations (UN) for the General Assembly and his likely interactions with a range of foreign leaders marking a frenetic pace of engagements. Soon after the meet­ing with GCC ministers, Jaishankar was in Berlin where he emphasised stability in the Modi government’s policies and a desire to meet key partners. The discussion in Ber­lin included Modi’s recent visit to Ukraine. “We talked about the situation in West Asia, Middle East, especially the Gaza con­flict and its ramifications. I am by the way just flying in from Saudi Arabia where I was meeting the Gulf FMs. We also spent some time on the Indo-Pacific. And briefly on some things which have been happening in our immediate neighbourhood [likely reference to Bangladesh],” Jaishankar said.

The minister pitched India’s plans for 12 new industrial zones, an ambitious skilling programme and big investments in logistics infrastructure alongside new and emerging technologies like semi-conductors, electric mobility and renewables to underline important areas of cooperation with German business. Around the same time, there has been another round of engagement with the Philippines and the prime minis­ter visited Brunei to cement ties with the sultanate. India has also, in keeping with its commitments to the Global South, sent food shipments to Zambia, Malawi and Zimbabwe which are facing emergencies due to drought caused by El Niño conditions. There is a 360-degree approach to India’s diplomacy undergirded by its growing economic and security capacities that help actualise geopolitical goals and secure its interests.

Since the 1970s, the Gulf has been a source of livelihoods, fuel­ling a boom in states like Kerala and providing opportunities for Indian white and blue-collar workers. Yet, despite the distinct contribution of Indians to the Gulf economy, not least by way of workmen and managerial expertise, India was perceived as a sup­plier of cheap labour. Indians embroiled in business disputes or those who fell foul of their employers were often subject to harsh and arbitrary application of local laws resulting in jail time. It can be argued that working conditions still leave a lot to be desired, but instances of identity papers being confiscated and conditions resembling bonded labour have declined.

There was a time when India’s diplomatic efforts in the Middle East were defined by gestures such as posting Muslim foreign service officers to the region, a symbolism disdainfully ignored by the host nations. A lack of imagination imposed by ideological frameworks like non-alignment and a tendency to see complex issues like the Palestinian-Israeli conflict as zero-sum games. An unshackling of ideas and options by viewing foreign policy through multiple prisms rather than pre-conditioned perspec­tives opened new doors for India in the Gulf and beyond. This righted an imbalance that hurt India and replaced it with more equal—and mutually respectful—terms of engagement.

diplomacyGulf foreign ministersIndia-Abu Dhabi relationsNarendra ModiRiyadhS JaishankarSheikh Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyanstrategic cooperation