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Kuwait Foreign Minister’s visit : Three pacts inked |
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The Kuwaiti Foreign Minister, Mohammed al-Sabbah al-Salem al Sabbah, who paid a three-day visit to New Delhi signed three important bilateral agreements with India and made two critical assurances: on taking care of New Delhi’s interests in the Iraqi hostage crisis and selling more crude oil.
The three agreements were signed by al Sabbah and the External Affairs Minister, K. Natwar Singh after their talks in the capital on August 25. These are: the Extradition Treaty, Agreement on Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters and a memorandum of Understanding for setting up of Strategic Consultative Group. The extradition treaty is a major advantage for India as it closes another loophole Indian criminals at large will not be able to get shelter in Kuwait. Further, the setting up of a strategic consultative group is also a crucial move. India has such dealings with very few countries. It will entail exchange of intelligence and other information. The group is likely to be headed by the Foreign Secretaries of the two countries. Kuwait is increasingly becoming an important country in the Indian scheme of things. Apart from oil, the Indian community in Kuwait is estimated to be 450,000 strong.
As the current Chairman of the Gulf Cooperation Council [GCC], the Kuwaiti Foreign Minister also signed the India-GCC Framework Agreement for Economic Cooperation. From the Indian side, this was signed by the Commerce and Industry Minister, Kamal Nath. The Kuwaiti Foreign Minister told reporters earlier in the day after signing an agreement on behalf of the GCC that Kuwait was keen on investing in Indian refineries and selling more crude to India. Currently, India buys some 12 million tonnes of crude oil from Kuwait annually.
The GCC Secretary General, Abdulrahm bin Haman al Attiyah, said, the GCC was keen on setting up a Free Trade Area [FTA] regime with India. He said India is of vital importance to us. Through the FTA, we want to get exemption from customs and tariffs for our exports. The same benefits will be made available to India by the GCC countries.
The Kuwaiti Foreign Minister held delegation-level talks with his Indian counterpart, K. Natwar Singh, preceded by a restricted session. The delegation-level talks covered several aspects of bilateral elations and trade, investment, industrial cooperation, IT sector and the energy sector came in for particular reference.
The Kuwaiti Foreign Minister also called on the Indian President, the Prime Minister and the Speaker of the Lok Sabha.
He later told newsmen that Kuwait will do its best for the early and safe release of the seven hostages in Iraq, three of whom are Indians. A joint statement issued after the talks indicated Kuwait’s desire to forge close and all-round relations with India. On terrorism, the statement said they exchanged views on extremist violence. They called for effective international cooperation to combat terrorism and deny sanctuaries to terrorist outfits. The statement spoke of Kuwait’s keenness to explore new possibilities of investment in India. The statement recognized Kuwait’s role as a significant source of energy for India’s rapidly growing economy and a factor in contributing to India’s energy security. On the economic side, the statement said, both sides emphasized the need for increased economic cooperation in four priority areas, trade, investment, industrial cooperation and transfer of technology including IT. It said the GCC which is keen on overhauling its educational curriculum sought India’s cooperation in this regard.
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