Embassy of India, Kuwait

India-Kuwait Bilateral Relations

Embassy of India
Kuwait

India-Kuwait Bilateral Relations

India and Kuwait enjoy traditionally warm and friendly relations, rooted in history and sustained people-to-people contact. The year 2020-21 marks 60th anniversary of establishment of diplomatic relations between two countries. India has been a natural trading partner of Kuwait and until 1961, Indian Rupee was the legal tender in Kuwait. Till the discovery and development of oil, Kuwait’s economy revolved around its fine harbour and maritime activities which included ship building, pearl diving, fishing and voyages to India on wooden dhows carrying dates, Arabian horses and pearls that were traded for wood, cereals, clothes and spices.

Political Relations

India – Kuwait high-level contacts are outlined below:

VVIP visits from India to Kuwait: Vice President Dr. Zakir Husain visited Kuwait in 1965. Prime Minister Smt. Indira Gandhi visited Kuwait in 1981 and Vice President Shri Hamid Ansari visited Kuwait in 2009.

VVIP visits from Kuwait to India: Crown Prince and Prime Minister Sheikh Sabah Al-Salem Al-Sabah visited India in 1964, the Amir Sheikh Jaber Al-Ahmed Al-Jaber Al-Sabah visited India in 1980 and again in 1983 (for the NAM Summit), HH the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmed Al-Jaber Al-Sabah visited India in 2006 and the Prime Minister Sheikh Jaber Al-Mubarak Al-Hamad Al-Sabah visited India in November 2013.

Recent Exchanges:

From India:

H.E. Shri Hardeep Singh Puri, Minister for Petroleum & Natural Gas, Housing & Urban Affairs met H.E. Mohammed Abdullatif Al-Fares, Minister of Oil of State of Kuwait on 15 November at Abu Dhabi during ADIPEC-2021 and discussed all issues of bilateral energy and education cooperation.
Shri Sanjay Bhattacharyya, Secretary (CPV & OIA) visited Kuwait in November 2021. Apart from visits to outsourcing center of the Embassy and Embassy Shelter for Domestic workers, he also interacted with members of Indian Community as well as consular staff of the Embassy. He also visited Reconnaissance Research Centre, a think tank in Kuwait.
Hon’ble External Affairs Minister Dr. S. Jaishankar, paid an official visit to Kuwait from 09-11 June, 2021. He called on Prime Minister of Kuwait and delievered a letter from Hon’ble PM addressed to HH the Amir of Kuwait. He held a meeting with Foreign Minister of Kuwait on 10 June. Minister of Commerce of Kuwait also joined during the meeting with FM of Kuwait. An MoU for ‘Cooperation in the Recruitment of Domestic Workers’ was signed in presence of EAM & Kuwaiti FM. Both Ministers launched the joint celebration of India-Kuwait establishment of 60 years diplomatic relations. EAM unveiled a bust of Mahatma Gandhi in the Chancery premises. Regional HOMs conference was held during the visit in which Indian Ambassadors from UAE, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia and Iran participated. Hon’ble EAM and Foreign Minister of Kuwait also met in Tehran on 05 August 2021 on the sidelines of their visit to Iran to attend the swearing-in of Iranian President.
Hon’ble Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas and Steel, Shri Dharmendra Pradhan, visited Kuwait on 11-12 October 2020 to offer condolences on the demise of late Amir of Kuwait Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmed Al-Jaber Al-Sabah.
Minister of State of External Affairs and Parliamentary Affairs Shri V. Muraleedharan paid an official visit to Kuwait on 14-15 September 2019 and met Minister of State for Economic Affairs of Kuwait and also held bilateral talks, on a wide range of issues, with the Deputy Foreign Minister of Kuwait.
Hon’ble EAM Smt. Sushma Swaraj paid an official visit to Kuwait from 30-31 October 2018 and called on the Amir H.H. Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmed Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, the Prime Minister H.H. Sheikh Jaber Mubarak Al-Hamad Al-Sabah; and held wide ranging discussions with H.E. Sheikh Sabah Khalid Al-Hamad Al-Sabah, Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister of Kuwait.
Gen. V.K. Singh (Retd), Minister of State for External Affairs visited Kuwait from 10-11 January 2018 and met Minister of State for Social Affairs. He had earlier visited Kuwait from 6-7 September 2016 and met Deputy PM and Interior Minister, Deputy Foreign Minister, Minister of Social Affairs & Labour and Governor of Farwaniya Governorate.
Shri M. J. Akbar, Minister of State for External Affairs visited Kuwait on 13 February 2018 to attend International Conference for Reconstruction of Iraq (ICRI) hosted by Kuwait. Earlier he led a 10 member delegation for the 3rd Joint Ministerial Commission Meeting (JMC) on Economic, Trade, Scientific and Technological Cooperation between India and Kuwait, held in Kuwait on 18-20 September 2017.
National Security Advisor, Shri Ajit Doval, led a five member official delegation to Kuwait for the 3rd India-Kuwait Security Cooperation Dialogue from 13-14 March 2017.

From Kuwait:

H.E. Sheikh (Dr.) Ahmed Nasser Al-Mohammad Al-Sabah, Foreign Minister and Minister of State for Cabinet Affairs, State of Kuwait visited India on 17-18 March 2021. A Joint Statement on establishment of a Joint Ministerial Commission at the level of Foreign Ministers was issued during the visit.
A delegation led by President of the Kuwaiti DGCA, Sheikh Salman Sabah Al-Salem Al-Humoud Al-Sabah participated in the Global Aviation Summit in Mumbai on 15-16 January 2019.
H.E. Ms. Hend Barak Al Sabeeh, Minister of Labour and Social Welfare visited India and held delegation level talks in New Delhi on 26 October 2018.
The Kuwaiti Army Chief of Staff Lt. General Mohd. Al Khoder visited India from 18-21 September 2017 and met Minister of Defence, Mrs. Nirmala Sitaraman and other senior officials to boost defence cooperation between the two countries. A 15-member Higher Command Course delegation from the Army War College visited Kuwait from 24-28 September 2017 on a study tour.
The Prime Minister of Kuwait accompanied by Deputy Prime Minister & Minister of Foreign Affairs Sheikh Sabah Khalid Al-Hamad Al-Sabah, Minister of Oil Mr. Mustafa Jassem Al-Shimali, Minister of Commerce and Industry Mr. Anas Khalid Al-Saleh, senior officials and business leaders had visited India from 7-10 November 2013.

Dialogue Mechanisms

Joint Commission: A Joint Statement on establishment of a Joint Ministerial Commission at the level of Foreign Ministers was issued during the visit of Foreign Minister of Kuwait to India in March 2021. Earlier, following the visit of the Amir of Kuwait to India in 2006, both sides agreed to set up an ‘India-Kuwait Joint Ministerial Commission on Economic and Technical Cooperation’. The 2nd JMC meeting was held in New Delhi in July 2008. The 3rd JMC meeting was held in Kuwait from 18-20 September 2017. Shri M. J. Akbar, Minister of State of External Affairs headed the Indian side during the JMC.

Foreign Office Consultations (FOCs): The Fourth Foreign Office Consultations (FOCs) between India and Kuwait were held in Kuwait in August 2018. Earlier the 3rd FOCs were held in New Delhi on 16 November 2016, 2nd FOCs were held in Kuwait on 11 September 2014 and 1st FOCs between India and Kuwait were held in New Delhi on 7 May 2012.

India- Kuwait Bilateral Agreements:

Prominent amongst the various bilateral agreements signed are:
Reciprocal Protection of Investment (2001)
Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters (2004)
Extradition Treaty(2004)
Juridical and Judicial Cooperation in Civil and Commercial Matters (2005)
MoU on Labour, Employment and Manpower Development (2007)
Scientific and Technological Cooperation (2009)
Cultural and Information Exchanges (2009)
Education and Learning Cooperation (2009)
MoU on Medical Cooperation (2012)
Agreement on Transfer of Sentenced Persons (2013)
MoU between Foreign Service Institute and the Saud N. Al-Sabah Kuwait Diplomatic Institute (2013)
MOU on S&T Cooperation between CSIR and Kuwait Institute for Scientific Research (KISR)
MoU on Sports & Youth Affairs (2013)
MOU on cooperation between KISR and Ministry of Earth Sciences (2014)
MOU between ISRO and KISR (2015)
MOU between Office of CAG and State Audit Bureau of Kuwait (2016)
The Protocol amending the Avoidance of Double Taxation and the Prevention of Fiscal Evasion with respect to Taxes on Income between India and Kuwait(2017)
Agreement on mutual exemption from visa requirements for holders of Diplomatic, Official and Special Passports (2018).
Memorandum of Understanding on Cooperation and Recruitment for Domestic Workers (initialed in 2018 and signed in 2021)
Agreement between Embassy of India and National Council for Culture, Arts and Letters (NCCAL), Kuwait to jointly celebrate and organize year-long celebrations on the occasion of the 60th anniversary of establishment of diplomatic relations between India and Kuwait.

Commercial Relations:

Historically, India-Kuwait relations have always had an important trade dimension. India has consistently been among the top ten trading partners of Kuwait.
Bilateral trade for FY 2021-22 stood at US$ 12.24 billion, registering a growth of 95.3% on YOY basis. Indian exports totalled US$1.24 billion and imports at US$11.0 billion. India’s exports to Kuwait included food items, cereals, ceramic products, machinery & mechanical appliances, vehicles, electrical and engineering equipment, coffee, tea and mate, iron and steel products, seafoods and marine products, jewellery, organic chemicals, textiles, etc.

A delegation from FICCI visited Kuwait from 2-5 July, 2022 to promote Indian food products in Kuwait. The Embassy has been organising trade and business promotion events as well as state facilitation events, in virtual and hybrid format in view of the COVID-19 pandemic. During the FY 2021-22, the Embassy held several series of events – one under the theme “Aatmanirbhar Bharat” and the one other under “States Facilitation Abroad” and another under promotion of “3Ts”. Events on sectors such as agricultural products, marine products, textile, automobile, Handloom, Solar Energy, Building materials, Agro products etc have been recently held. Under the States Facilitation series, events showcasing the States of Gujarat, Punjab, North-Eastern States and Tamil Nadu, Odisha, Kerala and West Bengal have also been organized. A 'Made in India exhibition” was held from 14-15 September 2021 in Embassy premises showcasing Indian products ranging from automobiles, Jewellery, FMCG, Ayurvedic medicines, Tea, Coffee and TRIFED products etc.
Indian companies in Kuwait: Indian PSUs like TCIL, LIC (International), LIC Housing Finance, New India Assurance Company, Oriental Insurance Company, have offices in Kuwait. During recent years, Indian EPC companies viz. Larsen & Toubro, Shapoorji Pallonji, Punj Lloyd, Simplex Projects, Essar, Kalpataru etc. were awarded EPC contracts worth over US$ 6 billion in Kuwait.

Kuwaiti Investment in India: Kuwaiti investments in India are estimated to be over US$ 5.5 billion, majority of which is by Kuwait Investment Authority (KIA), which had been invested in companies like GMR Infrastructure Ltd, Interglobe Aviation’s (Indigo Airlines) IPO, Bombay Stock Exchange and Power Grid Corporation of India Ltd. Other significant Kuwaiti presence in India includes those by Alghanim Group of Kuwait; the KAPICO group; National Aviation Services; Agility Logistics, Hasibat Holding Co, KGA Group, KCIC, KIPCO, Global Investment House, Kuwait Finance House etc. India related funds launched in Kuwait include India Fund (October 2005); Tijari India Fund (December 2006); India Equity Fund (January 2007); Kuwait Indian Holding Company; India Private Equity Fund; 3rd Real Estate Islamic Fund (May 2007); and Mayur Hedge Fund (August 2008).

Hydrocarbon sector: Kuwait remains a reliable supplier of crude oil & LPG to India. Shri Hardeep Singh Puri, Minister for Petroleum & Natural Gas, Housing & Urban Affairs met H.E. Mohammed Abdullatif Al-Fares, Minister of Oil of State of Kuwait on 15 November at Abu Dhabi during ADIPEC-2021 and discussed all issues of bilateral energy cooperation. During the visit to Kuwait of Hon’ble Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas Shri Dharmendra Pradhan in October 2020; delegation level talks were held between the two sides to strengthen bilateral engagement and cooperation in the oil domain. Mr. Nizar Al-Adsani, CEO of Kuwait Petroleum Corporation (KPC) accompanied by two members of KNPC attended the PETROTECH-2016 at New Delhi from 5-7 December 2016. The 5th meeting of the India-Kuwait JWG on Hydrocarbon was held virtually on 16 June, 2021.

Civil Aviation: After several months of flight restrictions, during which flights between India and Kuwait were only being operated under the Air Bubble Agreement and the Vande Bharat Mission, Kuwait resumed direct flights with India from September 2021. Kuwait Airways flies to Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Chennai, Delhi, Kochi, Mumbai and Thiruvananthapuram. Jazeera Airways flies to Ahmedabad, Hyderabad, Kochi, Mumbai and New Delhi. Indigo operates direct flights between Kuwait City and Ahmedabad, Hyderabad, Delhi, and Kozhikode.
Science and Technology: India and Kuwait have signed an S&T Agreement in April 2009. Director General of Kuwait Institute of Scientific Research (KISR) led a two-member delegation to India in October 2019 and held fruitful discussions with various research institutions, including ISRO, CSIR, IISc. An 8-member delegation from KISR visited India from 25-26 May 2015 and held meetings with CSIR. An 8-member delegation from CSIR and Ministry of Earth Sciences visited Kuwait on 14-16 April 2014. A delegation from Kuwait Institute for Scientific Research (KISR) visited India from 18-22 November 2013 and signed a Programme of Cooperation with Department of Science & Technology and an MOU with CSIR.

Medical cooperation:

India and Kuwait have signed an MOU on Medical Cooperation on April 23, 2012 at New Delhi. A Joint Working Group on Medical Cooperation was set up and its first meeting was held in Kuwait in November 2013. 2nd meeting of India-Kuwait JWG on Medical Cooperation was held on 31 August, 2021 virtually.

There is a sizable presence of Indian doctors and nurses in Kuwait who are regarded highly for their professionalism.
Cooperation during COVID-19 pandemic: During COVID-19 crisis, bilateral cooperation between India and Kuwait has been strong. An Indian medical team travelled aboard a special aircraft from India to Kuwait in April 2020 to help fight COVID-19 in Kuwait.
A consignment of 200000 doses of Covishield vaccines manufactured by Serum Institute of India (SII) reached Kuwait on 1 February 2021.
During the second wave of COVID-19 in India, Kuwaiti cabinet issued a statement in support of India and offered to send liquid medical oxygen to India over many cycles of an air and sea bridge. A Kuwaiti aircraft reached India on 4th May with the first consignment of medical assistance, which was followed by Indian Naval Ships, INS Kolkata, INS Kochi, INS Tarkash, INS Tabar & INS Shardul carrying substantial amounts of liquid medical oxygen (LMO), oxygen cylinders concentrators, and other medical equipment to India.

Cultural Relations:

Historically, India-Kuwait relationship has been anchored in and nurtured by close cultural contact and mutual exchange. The Embassy has been promoting Indian culture and heritage through various programs and initiatives. During the year 2021-22 and 2020-21, Embassy organized celebrations of International Yoga Day, Constitution Day, Ayurveda Day, 551st Birth Anniversary of Shri Guru Nanak Devji, Pravasi Bhartiya Divas, National Youth Day and initiated year-long celebration on the 125th anniversary of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose and India@75. Programme for Cultural and Information Exchanges (2013-16) was signed in 2013. A “Festival of India in Kuwait” was held in Kuwait in 2009. National Council for Culture, Arts and Letters (NCCAL), Kuwait and Embassy signed an agreement to jointly celebrate and organize year-long celebrations on the occasion of the 60th anniversary of establishment of diplomatic relations between India and Kuwait, under which ‘Namaste Kuwait’ festival was held at the National Museum, Kuwait on 7 December, 2021.
A 4-member delegation from Kuwait attended the two day 'International Conference on Yoga for Body and Beyond’ organized by the Ministry of AYUSH from 22-23 June 2016 at New Delhi. A three-member Kuwaiti delegation led by Assistant Director General of the National Council for Culture, Arts and Letters (NCCAL) Dr. Bader Al-Duweesh participated/ represented the Kuwaiti Information Minister Sheikh Salman Sabah Al-Salem Al-Humoud Al-Sabah in the World Cultural Festival, organized by the Art of Living Foundation from 11-13 March 2016 in New Delhi.

Youth Affairs & Sports: A two-member Youth Delegation from Kuwait visited India from 9-15 March 2016 under the Youth Exchange Programme.

There are around 300 Indian associations registered with the Embassy. These associations regularly organize socio-cultural programmes for the benefit of their members. Over 300 events have been held in the 2021 by different organizations on the occasion of 60th anniversary of establishment of diplomatic relations between India and Kuwait and 75th anniversary of India’s independence.

Indian Community in Kuwait:

The presence of approximately one million Indian community members in Kuwait (the largest expatriate community in Kuwait) forms an important dimension of our bilateral ties with Kuwait. They are present in all segments of society in Kuwait.
About 50000 Indian students study in 24 Indian schools in Kuwait.

Useful Resources:
Embassy website: www.indembkwt.gov.in;
Embassy on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com / indianembassykuwait;
On Twitter : @indembkwt; & other platforms: @indian_icn; @IndianIbn; @Indian_IPN; @thematic_lib
On Instagram: embassyofindia_kuwait
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10 August 2022