As a full time envoy Ahmad Javed takes charge of the Indian Embassy in Riyadh after a gap of several months, 2016 is all set to usher in a new chapter in Saudi-India ties.
Many believe Indian Premier Narendra Modi’s habit of springing pleasant surprises on the diplomatic front may well influence the course of bilateral relations between Riyadh and New Delhi fundamentally in the days ahead. Modi, having brought Christmas cheer in a gloomy Indo-Pakistan relationship by going out of the way, is expected to bring a radical change in the structure and direction of bilateral relations between the Kingdom and India.
Indeed, both the countries have maintained a multifaceted relationship for quite a long time. Independent India’s first diplomatic mission in KSA was set up in Jeddah way back in 1948, which initially served as a consulate. Since1957 it started functioning as a full-fledged embassy and was shifted to Riyadh much later in October 1985. KSA, being the destination of approximately 3.60 percent of India’s exports, is not only the fifth largest global market for Indian exporters but also the source of 6.30 percent of India’s total global imports.
Today, Saudi Arabia, India’s fourth largest trading partner, is a major pillar for safeguarding New Delhi’s energy security and an important economic partner for investments, joint ventures and transfer of technology projects. Riyadh, in fact, is the chief supplier of oil to India’s booming economy, fulfilling 20 percent of her total crude requirement, thus making the South Asian giant the fourth largest recipient of Saudi oil after China, United States and Japan. And India’s crude oil imports from KSA will likely double in the next two decades.
Besides, Saudi-India economic ties, in terms of actual investment, is growing at a steady pace since mid-2000 though much more needs to be done in order to impart strategic character to the bilateral relationship. A sizable number of Indian firms have taken advantage of the new Saudi laws to establish joint venture projects or wholly-owned subsidiaries in the Kingdom. Saudi Arabian General Investment Authority, according to revealed data, has issued as many as 426 licenses to Indian companies for joint ventures or 100 percent owned entities, thereby bringing into Kingdom the much-needed investments worth $1.6 billion. Licenses granted so far are for projects in diverse sectors including designing, consultancy and management as well as financial services, real estate development, telecommunications, information technology especially software development, pharmaceuticals et al.
Reputed Indian companies are not only gearing for automobile manufacturing in the Kingdom but also actively participating in infrastructure projects like Riyadh Metro and Makkah to Madinah high-speed rail. In another significant development that bolsters KSA’s priorities of women empowerment through active economic participation, India’s largest software exporter Tata Consultancy Services has launched the Kingdom’s first all-female business process center in partnership with General Electric and Saudi Aramco. Most importantly, New Delhi has pledged to assist KSA in setting up a state of the art Information and Communication Technology Centre of Excellence as well as institutes of higher learning, involving both education and research in the field of technology. Both nations have signed a memorandum of understanding on higher education in 2006, which seeks to promote exchange of students and teaching faculty for encouraging direct scientific and educational communications among the institutions in addition to exchange of official delegations.
KSA, on the other hand, according to Indian government’s Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion statistics, is the 50th biggest investor in the country, having invested $53.37 million between April 2000 and February 2015. During the financial year 2014-15, Saudi-India bilateral trade reached $39.4 billion, though registering a decrease of 18.96 percent compared to previous years due to a sharp slide in oil prices since June 2014. Amid old cleavages, wanton destruction and unbearable human sufferings across Middle East, KSA has found in India a partner capable of fostering regional peace and stability by bridging the sectarian gap in Islamic world. No wonder, Indian fighter jets can be seen landing on Saudi soil for the first time while Riyadh provided crucial assistance to enable India evacuate 6,000 citizens from Yemen.
According to retired diplomat Ranjit Gupta, who served as deputy chief of Indian mission in Jeddah, politico-religious factors have shaped Saudi-India relations since inception. The two most holy places of Islam, Makkah and Madinah, are thronged by thousands of Indian pilgrims for performing Umrah and the annual Haj, explains Gupta, adding, everything else including oil will always remain secondary to the sociocultural and spiritual bonding that fastens the two countries.
Not everything, therefore, should be viewed through security prism in diplomacy. India must harness the vast potential of bilateral ties by drawing upon each other’s intrinsic strengths.
