India-UAE push for stronger bilateral ties, investment at BRICS summit

India and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) explored ways to ramp up investments by Emirati entities, including by the new sovereign fund L’Imad, as Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Khaled bin Mohamed reviewed bilateral relations at a meeting on the margins of the Brics Summit on Saturday.

Crown Prince Khaled, the heir to UAE President Mohamed bin Zayed, is representing the Emirates at the Brics Summit as his father was away on a visit to Germany. The meeting with the UAE, one of India’s key strategic partners in West Asia, came against the backdrop of escalating tensions in the region over the US-Iran war.

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“Discussed taking our strategic partnership forward across defence, AI, space, critical minerals, energy, food security and connectivity,” Modi said on social media after his meeting with the Crown Prince. “From investment ties to new possibilities in strategic energy infrastructure and IMEC connectivity, there is immense potential ahead.”

Modi described the strong India-UAE ties as a symbol of stability, prosperity and peace at a “time of uncertainty in West Asia” and said the two sides are raising their ambitions higher after transforming their relations over the last few years.

Adani project in Odisha and UAE's investment fund

The two leaders acknowledged the role that L’Imad, the UAE’s newest sovereign investment fund, can play in deepening the bilateral partnership, the external affairs ministry said in a readout. They also noted the announcement by UAE’s International Holding Company (IHC) to invest $11.5 billion in an integrated greenfield aluminium project in Odisha.

International Resources Holding, an IHC group company, and Adani Enterprises Limited signed the initial pact with Odisha state in July for the aluminium project. IHC and AEL will both have a 50% stake in a joint venture for the project, which is expected to position Odisha as a global aluminium manufacturing hub.

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Cooperation opportunities in other sectors

Modi and Crown Prince Khaled also discussed opportunities to enhance cooperation in strategic and emerging areas, including defence, space, nuclear energy, technology and innovation, the readout said.

The Indian side has engaged with the top UAE leadership against the backdrop of the West Asia conflict to ensure continued energy supplies and the well-being of more than four million Indians living in the Emirates. Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed visited India in January, and Modi subsequently travelled to the UAE in May.

Modi also appreciated the UAE’s active participation in Brics under India’s presidency, and the leaders welcomed the positive outcomes within the grouping and agreed that the two countries will continue working closely through the bloc to advance shared interests and priorities. India and the UAE signed a comprehensive economic partnership agreement or CEPA in 2022, aiming to grow trade between the two countries.