Senior Congress leader Shashi Tharoor on Monday praised Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his outreach to the Islamic world, describing it as an “exemplary”. Significantly, Tharoor’s remarks came hours after PM Modi’s day-long visit to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) that saw the two nations strengthening strategic partnership. The Congress leader’s statement in fact highlights a decade of deft diplomacy by Prime Minister Narendra Modi that led to cordial relations with most Gulf countries.
Undeniably, the two foremost Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries, Saudi Arabia and the UAE, have excellent relations with India, which is attributable to PM Modi’s focus on New Delhi’s outreach to these nations. Other small and big countries of the Gulf also have close ties with India. Moreover, PM Modi has always made efforts to ensure that India’s relations with West Asia, which is regarded by New Delhi as its extended neighbourhood, remain cordial and close despite unavoidable controversies that do happen occasionally. PM Modi always worked in close coordination with the UAE in the minilateral formats such as the I2U2 (India-Israel-US-UAE) and the India-France-UAE trilateral partnership. The signing of the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) has brought India and UAE much closer economically, a position that is beneficial for both countries. India and the UAE are important for each other in strengthening positions economically and geopolitically. Obviously, the last nine years have seen ties between India and the Gulf nations getting deeper. PM Modi had himself once pointed it out in his speech, saying, “Since 2014, we have established close relations with Islamic nations such as UAE, Saudi Arabia and Bahrain.” That Saudi Arabia has included Yoga in its official syllabus lends credence to this fact. It is important to recall here that PM Modi was honoured with “The King Hamad Order of the Renaissance” in Manama, Bahrain three years ago. He had met the King of Bahrain Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa. Significantly, PM Modi’s visit to Bahrain was the first visit of an Indian Prime Minister to the country. Several similar visits of PM Modi to the Islamic nations over the past nine years have strengthened India’s close connect with the six-nation powerful GCC. PM Modi’s visit to UAE on Saturday reaffirmed his government’s foreign policy strategy that puts primacy on outreach to the Islamic and Gulf countries which come are considered as an extended neighbourhood by the Modi government. In what is being viewed as a big diplomatic achievement for New Delhi, UAE joined India in sending a strong message to Pakistan over cross-border terrorism. Both the nations reaffirmed their joint commitment to the fight against extremism and terrorism, including cross-border terrorism, in all forms, at both the regional and international levels.
This was stated in a joint statement released after PM Modi’s meeting with UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan in Abu Dhabi. Nothing could explain better the growing ties between India-UAE than this example. Significantly, it was PM Modi’s fifth visit to the UAE—a fact that speaks volumes about how the Modi government puts primacy on India’s ties with the Gulf and Islamic countries. Another important development to be recalled here is that Modi was honoured with the “Order of Zayed”, the UAE’s highest civilian award, in 2019 as a mark of appreciation for his efforts to boost bilateral ties between the two nations. PM Modi held talks with Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed, President of the UAE and Ruler of Abu Dhabi during his fifth visit to the Gulf country since 2015. His previous visits to the country were in 2015, 2018, 2019 and 2022. The growing ties between India and the Gulf nations can be attributed to New Delhi being “a bright spot” in terms of the progress making economy of the world.
Needless to say, Modi has been able to develop his personal rapport with the rulers of the Gulf nations, which is one of the reasons why even leaders in the opposition camp such as Shashi Tharoor, who is known for immense understanding of diplomacy, heap praise on PM Modi. It goes without saying that India’s relations with Gulf countries have undergone a sea change in the last few decades. This change has been for the better because PM Modi has nurtured relations and spent time and energy in developing ties with the nations in the Gulf and West Asia.