UAE President's Third Official Visit, 3-Hour Diplomacy, & Trilateral Ties

MBZ's visit gains significance amid the "coming-of-age" strategic ties between India and the UAE, which were augmented by the rather less-publicised but crucial role National Security Advisor Ajit Doval played in ramping up defence and counter-terrorism strategies. 

India-UAE Strategic Defence Partnership

The India-UAE Strategic Defence Partnership has been taking shape. It builds on the defence cooperation, which began in 2003, and received the much-needed momentum in recent years. Under the Letter of Intent signed on January 19, India and the UAE will work together to establish the Strategic Defence Partnership Framework Agreement and expand defence cooperation across defence industrial collaboration, defence innovation and advanced technology, training, education and doctrine, special operations and interoperability, cyberspace, and counter-terrorism. among others. The focus is now on the joint production of defence hardware by India and the UAE. 

From training and regular exchange programmes to visits by the Indian military’s top brass (and vice versa) to the possibility of joint defence manufacturing, the defence ties have come a long way. There has been a renewed focus on forging partnerships and joint ventures between the defence manufacturers of both sides. There has been a regular and high-level participation in each other’s defence exhibitions.

While IDEX & NAVDEX and the Dubai Air Show are held in the UAE, Aero India and the Defence Expo are conducted in India. This is a testimony to the intent of both sides to further bilateral partnership in the field of defence manufacturing. Saudi Arabia could emulate this model of defence industry partnership with India to reduce its dependence on the military of Pakistan. 

Counter-Terrorism Measures

While the defence partnership has caught global attention, India and the UAE have also quietly ramped up their ties on counter-terror. A few would be aware that the UAE has a robust counter-terror and deradicalisation mechanism that helps authorities to curb radicalisation. In fact, the UAE has put in place one of the most effective counter-terrorism mechanisms globally, attracting various nationalities from all continents. 

India and the UAE are also building an informal trilateral partnership involving Israel. Besides, New Delhi and Abu Dhabi are steadily putting in place a global partnership that would cover West Asia, Africa, and Eurasia.

India is an emerging global power ready to provide leadership for the Global South. By consolidating ties, the MBZ-led UAE has been positioning itself as a regional player in the Northern Indian Ocean Region, Eastern and Southern Africa, Western Africa, and Eurasia.

It has deep commercial interests in its neighbourhood and near abroad, and wants to showcase its strategic heft with India and Israel. It wants to build an economy of the future by creating a hub for global talent, and emerge as a powerhouse.

This may just be the beginning of what promises to be a long-term partnership between India and the UAE, driven by shared interests.    

(The writer is a commentator on geopolitics. Views are personal.)