New Delhi, Jan 19 : India and the United Arab Emirates on Monday unveiled plans to have a strategic defence partnership and sealed an LNG deal as Prime Minister Narendra Modi and UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan set a USD 200 billion annual trade target by 2032 while laying out a broad agenda to shore up the ties.
Modi welcomed Al Nahyan at the Delhi airport with a hug and then they travelled together in the same vehicle to the prime minister’s residence, where they held talks in the restricted as well as delegation-level formats.
Out of the five documents inked by the two sides, the most striking one was the letter of intent to establish a strategic defence partnership, a move that came four months after Pakistan and Saudi Arabia sealed a defence pact to strengthen their decades-long defence ties.
Under the defence partnership, India and the UAE are eyeing defence industrial collaboration and cooperation in advanced technologies, cyberspace training, special operations, interoperability of their militaries and counter terrorism.
Another pact was inked to provide for the purchase of 0.5 million metric tonnes of LNG (Liquefied Natural Gas) by Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited (HPCL) from Abu Dhabi National Oil Company Gas over a period of 10 years starting 2028.
The UAE is India’s second-largest supplier of LNG to India after Qatar.
The two sides also decided to explore collaboration in advanced nuclear technologies, including the development of large nuclear reactors and small modular reactors, as well as cooperation in advanced reactor systems, nuclear power plant operations and maintenance and nuclear safety.
“This has been a short, but extremely substantive visit,” Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri said at a media briefing after the UAE leader concluded his nearly three-and-a-half-hour visit that came amid increasing tensions in the Middle East and trade disruptions caused by Washington’s policy on tariffs.
Artificial Intelligence was identified as another priority area of cooperation and it was decided to collaborate on setting up a supercomputing cluster in India with the UAE partnership, Misri said, adding the Gulf nation will also look at investments for expanding data centre capacities in India.
The foreign secretary said the two sides also set a target of USD 200 billion in annual trade by 2032. In 2024-25, the volume of two-way trade between the two sides was USD 100 billion.
To boost trade ties, Modi and Al Nahyan directed their teams to work towards interlinking the national payment platforms to enable efficient, fast and cost-effective cross-border payments.
They also called for the expeditious implementation of key initiatives, such as the ‘Bharat Mart’, the ‘Virtual Trade Corridor’ and the ‘Bharat-Africa Setu’ to promote MSME products across the Middle East, West Asia, Africa and the Eurasia region, according to a joint statement.
“A letter of intent was signed between the two sides to work towards concluding a framework agreement for a strategic defence partnership between India and the UAE,” Misri said.
The joint statement said the two leaders highlighted deep respect for each other’s sovereignty and territorial integrity and the importance of strategic autonomy.
It said Modi and Al Nahyan acknowledged steady and strong bilateral defence and security cooperation as a core pillar of the comprehensive strategic partnership.
Another letter of intent was also signed for joint work in developing space infrastructure.
Under this initiative, both sides will look to set up new launch complexes, satellite fabrication facilities, joint missions, space academy and training centres, the foreign secretary said.
A separate document was inked to provide for the UAE’s participation in the development of a special investment region in Gujarat’s Dholera.
This initiative will look at the establishment of an international airport, a pilot training school, an MRO (Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul) facility, a greenfield port, a smart urban township, as well as projects related to railway connectivity and energy infrastructure, Misri added.
Modi and Al Nahyan welcomed the establishment of DP World and First Abu Dhabi Bank branches in GIFT City, reinforcing its emergence as a leading international financial centre.
Both sides also reaffirmed their strong commitment to enhancing UAE-India cooperation in food security, recognising its strategic importance in ensuring sustainable supply chains and long-term resilience, the joint statement said.
The discussions between Modi and Al Nahyan focused on cooperation in several new and emerging areas, including new opportunities for civil nuclear cooperation in the light of the passage of the Shanti Act in India.
An agreement on food safety was also signed. It will provide for cooperation in the food sector and encourage food products and other agricultural exports from India to the UAE.
It will benefit the farmers of India and contribute to food security in the UAE, the foreign secretary said.
Both sides also decided to collaborate on the establishment of a supercomputing cluster in India as well as data centres.
The two leaders directed their teams to explore the possibility of establishing ‘Digital Embassies’ between the UAE and India, under mutually recognised sovereignty arrangements. This is a relatively new concept, Misri said.
Modi and Al Nahyan reiterated their unequivocal condemnation of terrorism in all its forms, including cross-border terrorism, and emphasised that no country should provide safe haven to those who finance, plan, support or commit terrorist acts.
They agreed to continue cooperation within the framework of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) to counter terror financing and strengthen anti-money laundering efforts, the joint statement said.
The two leaders also reaffirmed their commitment towards the India-Middle East-Europe Corridor (IMEC), saying it would be of great strategic importance and would significantly enhance the flow of commerce and energy between India, the Middle East and Europe.
The foreign secretary said the situation in Yemen, Gaza and Iran was discussed at the talks, but declined to elaborate on them.
“All of these issues were discussed between the leaders. I cannot get into the details at this stage, but yes, both leaders had the opportunity to share their views and opinions in detail on these issues,” he said.
The UAE president expressed support for the success of India’s chairmanship of the BRICS grouping this year.
Earlier, Modi said on ‘X’: “Went to the airport to welcome my brother, His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President of the UAE. His visit illustrates the importance he attaches to a strong India-UAE friendship. Looking forward to our discussions.”
The UAE president was seen off at the airport by External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar. (PTI)
