Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi signed a trade corridor agreement with the United Arab Emirates (UAE) on Tuesday during a visit to the region.
The new deal would connect the subcontinent with Europe via ports in the Middle East and it was announced as Modi met with Emirati President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan. In a statement, the Indian Foreign Ministry said that the deal would build on previous understandings and cooperation on trade.
It added that the trade pact would also foster India and UAE cooperation, furthering regional connectivity. Sheikh Mohammed said that the UAE is currently going through a difficult time but because of its relationship with India, they are building a lot of hope and forward to a better future.
The new India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor is a proposed ship-to-rail transit network that was first announced on the sidelines of last year's G20 summit in New Delhi. The original plan of the trade pact was for the route to extend from India across the Arabian Sea to the UAE, continuing through Saudi Arabia, Jordan, and Israel on to Europe, as per DW News.
However, the announcement on Tuesday of an "intergovernmental framework agreement" did not provide details of any countries other than India and the UAE. Previously, the plan received support from the United States and the European Union.
Indian Prime Minister Modi's latest trip to the UAE, which is the third in the last eight months, will last for two days. He is set to inaugurate the region's largest Hindu temple on Wednesday as well as address an estimated 60,000 Indian expatriates at a community event.
During Modi's meeting with Sheikh Mohammed, the former praised the latter as his "brother" and thanked him for being a good friend and well-wisher of the Indian community. He added that the two countries share a strong bond that is growing ever stronger.
Bolstering International Relationship
The Indian prime minister then recalled his first visit to the UAE in 2015, which was a year after he was elected to his position. He said that his trip at the time marked the first by an Indian PM to the UAE in the last three decades, according to NDTV.
He also pointed out he had already had the pleasure of welcoming Sheikh Mohammed four times, adding that it was rare to see a leader who cares for Indians in his country the way that the UAE president does.
Modi said that the UAE leader played a big role in the strengthening of ties between the two countries. He noted that during the coronavirus pandemic, the two were able to discuss how to better protect each other's people.
In 2020, the UAE forged diplomatic relations with India under a U.S.-backed initiative that was known as the Abraham Accords. This agreement led other Arab states, including Bahrain, to establish ties.
Throughout the Israel-Hamas war, the UAE has maintained those relations with Jerusalem, but it has also repeatedly criticized the latter's bombing of Gaza and called for a ceasefire in the war-torn region, said Reuters.
