Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Kuwait over the weekend, the first bilateral prime ministerial visit to the Gulf country in 43 years, was important for several reasons.
One is that Kuwait was the only country in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) that Modi had not visited since taking office as India’s prime minister in 2014.
A noteworthy takeaway from Modi’s 21-22 December to Kuwait was the elevation of ties to a Strategic Partnership. Another was the signing of a pact on defense cooperation.
“The leaders stressed that it is in line with the common interests of the two countries and for the mutual benefit of the two peoples. The establishment of a strategic partnership between both countries will further broad-base and deepen our long-standing historical ties,” a joint statement issued at the end of the Modi visit said. Ties would be expanded to include “comprehensive and structured cooperation” in trade, investment, defense, security, energy, culture, education, technology and people-to-people ties, it added.
On the other hand, the defense pact will “institutionalize bilateral cooperation in the area of defense. Key areas of cooperation include training, exchange of personnel and experts, joint exercises, cooperation in defense industry, supply of defense equipment, and collaboration in research and development, among others,” an Indian government statement said.
The defense agreement brings Kuwait on par with other Gulf nations vis a vis India; India had upgraded defense ties with all other GCC members and has had exchanges in the form of military exercises. These have been in the form of military and naval exercises. Top Indian military leaders have visited several GCC countries and New Delhi too has played host to senior military personnel from these countries.
The pact is also of significance against the backdrop of threats to international shipping in the Persian Gulf due to tensions between Israel and Iran.
In a statement ahead of his Kuwait visit, Modi said his talks with the Kuwaiti leadership would be “an opportunity to chalk out a roadmap for a futuristic partnership for the benefit of our people and the region.”
Ties between India and the Gulf region have transformed since 2000 and particularly since Modi became prime minister in 2014. Since then, Modi has visited the economically vital Gulf region multiple times. Modi’s personal efforts in ensuring better ties with the region have been aided substantially by the signing of the Abraham Accords in 2020, which has normalized ties between Israel and the Arab states.
Of all regional blocs, the GCC is currently India’s largest trading partner with 15.8 percent of India’s total trade in 2022–23, compared to 11.6 percent of total trade with the European Union. Incidentally, Kuwait took over the rotating presidency of the GCC earlier this month.
Traditionally, the Gulf region has been a source of energy for India to power its economic growth, it is a major source of investment and it also houses a third of India’s expatriate population who send valuable foreign remittance back home.
Kuwait, for example, is home to about 1 million Indians; Indians are the largest expatriate population in Kuwait constituting 30 percent of the country’s workforce. The Gulf country is India’s sixth largest crude supplier, meeting 3 percent of the country’s energy needs. Bilateral trade was valued at $10.47 billion in 2023-24.
With India’s definition of the Indo-Pacific including the east coast of Africa and adjoining areas and New Delhi claiming the Gulf region as its extended neighborhood, it’s not surprising that India has sought defense engagement with all the GCC states.
There is a common interest in securing the sea lanes in the region, including those in the Red Sea, the Gulf of Aden, the Gulf of Oman and the Arabian Sea, given that they are some of the world’s busiest.
This is a far cry from the days when New Delhi was seen as wary of the Gulf countries given their closer linkages with India’s archrival Pakistan. Memories of an Indian civilian passenger aircraft, highjacked by terrorists from Nepal in December 1999 and flown to Abu Dhabi where some passengers were released, have receded. At that time, India’s then ambassador to the UAE was not allowed onto the tarmac where the highjacked aircraft was parked for a while before it was flown to Kandahar in Afghanistan.
Today counterterrorism is a strong element of bilateral cooperation. A measure of the extent of the turn-around in ties can be gauged from the fact that India has managed to secure the extradition of many engaged in anti-India activities in the Gulf nations.
Another example of the sea change in ties: India’s newly procured Rafale fighter jets, flying in from France, were refueled by UAE tankers over the Gulf of Oman in 2021.
“Strong convergences of interests, supported by his (Modi’s) ‘personal diplomacy’ had contributed immensely towards transforming the ties. Suffice to say that Modi’s ME (Middle East) policy was one of the most successful stories of his foreign policy,” says Alvite Ningthoujam, assistant professor at the Pune-based Symbiosis School of International Studies in a commentary for the Delhi-based Observer Research Foundation think tank.
“Convergence” refers to Gulf nations looking at Asian countries and among them, India, as a potential investment destination, coinciding with New Delhi’s quest for investment from abroad. India’s growth prospects are seen as strong with many predicting that it will emerge the world’s third largest economy behind the U.S. and China by 2028-30, overtaking Japan and Germany.
Other areas of convergence include science and technology, medicine and healthcare, space, food security, cyber security, artificial intelligence, civil nuclear cooperation, fertilizers, climate change and renewable energy. India is also negotiating a free trade pact with the GCC.
Modi’s visit to Kuwait also comes at a time when West Asia is in turmoil due to the Israel-Palestine conflict. India has expressed support for a two-state solution i.e. a state of Palestine existing alongside Israel while strongly condemning the attacks of October 7, 2023, that triggered a massive and no-holds barred Israeli response.
The Modi visit also comes amid the fall of the Bashar al-Assad regime in Syria. Assad’s Baath Party has had close links with Iraq’s Baath Party and its leader, former Iraqi president Saddam Hussein. Hussein invaded Kuwait in 1990 sparking the first Gulf War. India at the time was seen on the side of Iraq which soured ties with Kuwait. The visit is therefore definitely an opportunity for India and Kuwait to bury any longstanding differences and craft new ties for the future.
The visit also took place when India and Gulf states like Saudi Arabia and the UAE are looking at a new connectivity linkage i.e. the India-Middle East-Europe-Economic Corridor (IMEEC). The Israel-Palestine conflict has cast a shadow over the ambitious corridor plan but New Delhi is hoping for progress soon. It is on the back of old but strong commercial ties with Gulf countries like Kuwait, that India is hoping that the IMEEC will be become a successful reality.
Given that the West Asia region is in a state of transition and flux, it is logical that India solidifies ties with all GCC member states and not just with prominent ones like Saudi Arabia and the UAE. Increased engagements with all groups and countries – big and small – would help India hedge against disruptions in an increasingly uncertain world.
