India’s support to Kuwait to fight Covid-19 ignites goodwill, adds X-factor to the relationship

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Riding on the goodwill generated by India’s timely support to counter the Covid-19 pandemic, Kuwait’s Foreign Minister Ahmed Nasser al-Mohammed Al-Sabah, now in India, is set to ink a framework agreement that would include everything from food and energy security to trade and investment.</p>
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Al-Sabah held talks with his Indian counterpart, Jaishankar on Thursday. "The field of cooperation between the two countries is enormous. We need to tap the fields of cooperation that have not been done earlier," he said during a late evening press conference on Wednesday.</p>
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The visit has a positive subtext following India’s active support to Kuwait to fight Covid-19, which included the despatch of a C-17 plane full of medical supplies including Hydroxychloroquine and paracetamol tablets. The Indian side had also set up a Covid-19 testing lab in Kuwait during the early stage of the pandemic. That extra help appears to have sparked an X-factor to the relationship.</p>
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Unsurprisingly, Al-Sabah lauded India for standing by Kuwait in its “darkest moments and in our direst time”. He applauded the valiant role “white army of Indian nationals” – or nurses and doctors – who had been sent to support Kuwaitis and expats.</p>
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“Even when there was a total lockdown in India, the Indian leadership sent medical assistance to Kuwait and this was very much appreciated,” he said.</p>
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Al-Sabah also underplayed a bill to limit entry of foreign nationals to Kuwait—a transparent attempt to assuage India’s concerns about the return of expat workers to the Emirate, who are major contributors of hard-currency remittances.</p>
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He pointed out that the bill was only meant to block entry of illegal residents.   </p>
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Kuwait’s population of 4.1 million includes 1.4 million Kuwaitis and almost 900,000 Indians, he noted. “They [Indians] share with us our bread and butter. They have contributed very much and are still contributing in our development and strengthening our cooperation,” he said.</p>
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“The Indian community is an element of security of Kuwait and also an integral part of the new generation ahead as they are very much involved in our education system. The bill discussed last year was only for illegal expats in Kuwait and is not aimed at any of the more than 170 nationalities present in the country,” he added.</p>
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The visiting foreign minister flagged his interest in India’s support to bolster Kuwait’s food security. Kuwait <a href="https://borgenproject.org/food-security-in-kuwait/" target="_blank">imports over 96%</a> of its food. Given that Kuwait only has 1.4 million citizens, more than 700,000 foreign nationals and migrant workers benefit from a subsidy programmed, says a report by the Food and Agriculture Organisation. "There is abundance of food at some places and there is scarcity of food elsewhere. Food security is a potential challenge for all countries of the world," Al Sabah said pointing to the downstream impact of the Coronavirus pandemic.</p>
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Kuwait is a major player in enhancing <a href="https://indembkwt.gov.in/india-kuwait-trade-and-economic-relation.php">India’s energy security</a>. Last year Union Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas, and Steel, Dharmendra Pradhan, had visited Kuwait and met Kuwaiti oil minister Khaled Ali Al-Fadhel. Pradhan had sought Kuwait investments in India under the Atmanirbhar Bharat initiative.</p>
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Al Sabah was all support for the <a href="https://www.state.gov/the-abraham-accords/">Abraham Accords</a>. He said: "This is an opportune time to pursue peace between Israel and Palestine. We hope for India's understanding in this matter." He added that the Israel and Palestine issue has dragged on for a long time during which a lot of violence and bloodshed has taken place. He added that with the revival of the peace process, "we cannot allow the Israel and Palestine issue to linger on now."</p>