Indian delegation explores defense ties with Saudi Arabia

[ejazr]

Indian delegation explores defense ties with Kingdom - Arab News

By GHAZANFAR ALI KHAN | ARAB NEWS

Published: Oct 5, 2011 21:03 Updated: Oct 5, 2011 21:07

RIYADH: A defense delegation from India, which wrapped up its visit to the Kingdom Wednesday, expressed keen interest to build strong bilateral defense ties based on the new strategic realities of Asia and the changing political alliances in the Middle East. "New Delhi, a close ally of Riyadh, looks forward to deepening defense cooperation with Saudi Arabia," said Manohar Ram, deputy chief of Indian mission, here Wednesday.

Ram said that the 16-member delegation from the National Defense College (NDC) of India called on the senior Saudi officials in Riyadh, visited the local military facilities and discussed a range of issues of common concerns during their four-day stay in the Kingdom. The delegation, headed by Maj. Gen. Bal Krishna Sharma and comprising officers from a few other countries associated with the NDC, were on a study tour in the Kingdom.

Referring to the objectives behind the NDC study tour, Ram said that this trip was designed to promote closer relations between India and Saudi Arabia. In the past few years, India enhanced its military ties with the Gulf states including Saudi Arabia. "We have exchanged visits of our service chiefs and naval ships, and Saudi officers have participated in our training programs, including at the prestigious NDC," he added.

He said that India had no defense agreement with Saudi Arabia. "However, our defense ties have diversified and become more substantial since the visit of Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah to India," said the diplomat. Saudi Arabia is also part of the Indian Ocean Naval initiative, which seeks to increase maritime cooperation bilaterally as well as among the navies of the world.

The NDC, located in New Delhi, is an institution of higher learning of the defense forces of India and is the only military institution that imparts knowledge on all aspects of national security and strategy. It also offers training to security personnel from other countries.

The Indian Armed Forces are one of the world's largest military forces, with roughly 1.32 million active standing army and 2.14 million reserve forces, thus giving India the third-largest active troops in the world. India is the world's largest arms importer accounting for nine percent of all global imports. Its defense expenditure will be around US$112 billion by 2016.

 

[Yusuf]

Yeah a lot has moved over the last few years in Indo Saudi relations. From them covering our oil supply to other trade ties and now stepping towards military ties. Good going.

 

[Ray]

Apart from oil, what are the trade or economic connection India has with the Saudis?

What are the defence/ strategic ties India is seeking from a close Pakistani ally?

 

[Yusuf]

Sir, Saudi Pak relations had been cooling over a period.

Bilateral investment between india and Saudis is on a rise. MMS's visit last year was again to expand trade and Investment.

Military ties could include joint exercises, training. may be india could sell some boats. Saudi gets all it's stuff from the west but it could buy some from india in the future.

 

[mayfair]

How will India juggle between Iran, Saudi Arabia and Turkey, not to mention Israel.

 

[Yusuf]

When Israel can reconcile with Egypt and Saudis, why should India have any problem juggling between those countries.
The politicians here have to stop linking India's Muslim population with the Arab world and make policies based on that for starters. We didn't have overt relations with Israel on that basis for 50 years. See what has happened since.

 

[Ray]

When Israel can reconcile with Egypt and Saudis, .

Common and persuasive factor - the USA.

Both agreed because they got heavy assistance from the USA.

Pakistan budget required Saudi bailout recently when a Pakistan Minister went and begged it out of them.

 

[ejazr]

Just as an overview;

Indian Defence diplomacy in the GCC has been improving considerably with both sides moving forward on this. While India already has advanced relations with Oman, UAE and Qatar primarily. Saudi Arabia being a G20 member is ofcourse the main pillar of the GCC itself.

The Saudis had already opposed Pakistani actions in the Kargil war and took India's side asking Pakistani troops to withdraw to the LoC. Post 9/11, there was again bilateral communication and co-operation.
However, the first major opening to the Saudis and the GCC in general was actually done under the NDA when Jaswant Singh. Something that the BJP and Jaswant Singh in particular doesn't get enough credit for. Jaswant Singh was able to use his personal chemistry and being a person of the desert to establish a rapport with the Saudi establishment. He even ended up being gifted two thorough=bred Arabian horses personally on the then Crown Prince Abdullah's ranch.

The Hindu : Jaswant visit 'exceeded expectation'

January 2001
By C. Raja Mohan

RIYADH, JAN. 22. It is not always easy for any two nations to pick up the pieces of a bilateral relationship after nearly two decades of looking away from each other. And that precisely was the objective of the External Affairs Minister, Mr. Jaswant Singh's just-concluded mission to Saudi Arabia. The political results from what Mr. Singh called a ``pilgrimage'' to the desert kingdom have ``far exceeded expectations'', diplomatic sources here say.

Calling the visit a ``turning point in Saudi-Indian ties,'' the local English language newspaper, Riyadh Daily, declared editorially that after the groundwork by Mr. Singh here, ``time will ensure the building of a monumental edifice'' of cooperation between the two nations.

In undertaking the first-ever visit by an Indian Foreign Minister to Saudi Arabia, India focussed on gaining three important outcomes - reestablishment of channels of communication, finding an institutional framework for a sustained engagement, and defining a political framework for bilateral relations. Mr. Singh realised all these and some more.

Mr. Singh's visit has now re-opened high-level contacts between the two sides. Hopefully, there will be an early date for a return visit by the Foreign Minister Prince Saud al Faisal, and work will begin in India to receive the Crown Prince himself. The reactivation of the joint commission, and the agreement on frequent contacts between the two foreign offices now institutionalises cooperation between the two countries.

Despite the neglect of each other, economic interaction steadily moved upwards. Indian energy imports from Saudi Arabia and the remittances from the expatriate labour in the kingdom, now totalling nearly 1.5 mn have pushed the economic content of bilateral relations to nearly $6 bn.

The Saudi economic reforms are now opening up new opportunities for trade and investment. The emerging professional middle class and entrepreneurs are also looking at India for cooperation in knowledge-based industries.

The understanding between Mr. Singh and the Saudi leadership that the security of the subcontinent and the Arabian peninsula are inseparable and their joint rejection of violence and terrorism have provided a new template in which future political and security cooperation could be developed, diplomatic sources here said.

But the sources cautioned against exaggerated expectations in India, arguing that Mr. Singh's visit only marks the beginning of a process of engagement. Both sides have overcome the cynicism of the past and embarked on a long journey, they add.

In undertaking the new diplomatic thrust towards Saudi Arbia, it was not the objective of Mr. Singh to undermine the long-standing cooperative relationship between Riyadh and Islamabad. The aim, instead, was to get an agreement on a broad set of principles of regional security and expand bilateral cooperation with Saudi Arabia.

Unlike Pakistan, which expressed concern about Indo-Saudi rapproachment, India understands that only enlightened self- interest will guide the Saudi policy towards the subcontinent. Mr. Singh's aim was to try and remove some of the misperceptions on India's regional policy and find some common political ground. The unambiguous signal from the Saudis was that they are ready to move forward.

Given accumulated baggage of the past and the diplomatic style of Saudi Arabia, developing a personal chemistry with the Saudi leadership was a critical but unpredictable factor during Mr. Singh's three-day visit.

The Saudi establishment was very gracious in its reception of Mr. Singh. And the Indian Foreign Minister found the right touch in breaking the political ice with the Saudi leadership. Mr. Singh's call on the Crown Prince Abdulla bin Abdul Aziz was the most important encounter, and the two leaders quickly established personal rapport.

The message from the Royal household after the meeting with the Crown Prince was, ``We trust Mr. Singh: he is a man like us, from the desert''. The new trust and warmth was reflected in the extraordinary invitation for lunch at the personal farm of the Crown Prince and the gift of two thorough bred Arabian horses.

Ofcourse, Manmohan Singh and UPA were able to build on the foundations and after a decade we had Manmohan Singh visit Saudi Arabia where important security and extradition treaties were signed.

A recent IDSA seminar on India-GCC defence diplomacy also had some interesting tidbits

http://defenceforumindia.com/foreign-relations/22321-indias-defence-diplomacy-gulf-idsa-seminar.html
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The Gulf region, Pradhan argues, is also of strategic importance for India for other reasons:

* India-GCC trade amounts to over USD 84 billion. The GCC countries are a lucrative market for Indian goods such as textiles, spices, other food products, electrical goods and machineries, and IT products.
* The Gulf region supplies around two-thirds of India's total energy requirements.
* The Indian diaspora comprising around 5 million people: protecting the interests of Indian workers in the region has been an important area of focus in bilateral relations.
* India's long-term energy security could be dependent on Iranian oil and gas reserves (Iran has the second and third largest proven gas and oil reserves respectively in the world). India's trade with Iran amounted to USD 13.39 billion in 2009-2010. Possible future sectors of mutual investment include oil and gas, steel, fertilizers, infrastructure and railways. Iran is also significant in terms of providing India with an access route to Afghanistan and Central Asia, and for cooperation on maritime security.
* The GCC countries see India as an important partner in tackling terrorism in their respective regions; defence cooperation agreements have been signed with the UAE, Oman and Qatar.

Pradhan points out that India has established defence ties with several GCC states:

1. Oman: India and Oman signed a military protocol in 1972, which led to a three- year deputation of Indian Navy personnel to man Oman's Navy in 1973. A MoU on defence cooperation was signed between India and Oman in 2005. Areas of cooperation include joint military exercises, military training and IT, educational courses and programmes, exchange of observers and formal visits. Currently, a two-tier arrangement for defence cooperation – Joint Military Cooperation Committee (JMCC) and Air Force-to-Air Force Staff Talks (AFST) - exists with Oman.
2. UAE: India signed a defence cooperation agreement with the UAE in 2003 that will focus bilateral cooperation on military training, cooperation in military medical services and jointly combating pollution caused by the military at sea. Regular naval exercises take place between India and the UAE.
3. Saudi Arabia: India and Saudi Arabia have not yet signed any agreement on defence cooperation, though the Delhi Declaration signed in 2006 forms the basis for security cooperation. Joint naval exercises in addition to joint exercises between the Indian Army and Royal Saudi Land Force are also being planned.
4. Iran: India-Iran relations have been shaped by political relations between the two countries as well as by the role of the United States in the region. India signed a MoU on defence cooperation with Iran in 2001. The New Delhi Declaration signed in 2003 laid further emphasis on defence cooperation in areas including training and mutual visits. The Declaration also laid focus on cooperation on sea-lane control and security, joint naval exercises, Indian assistance in upgrading Iran's Russian-made defence systems and establishment of joint working groups on counter-terrorism and counter-narcotics. India's vote against Iran at the IAEA in 2005 has hindered further strengthening of defence cooperation.
5. Qatar: India signed defence cooperation and security and law enforcement agreements with Qatar in 2008. These agreements focus on cooperation on issues including terrorism, piracy, maritime security, money laundering, narcotics and transnational crimes. These agreements are significant also because it gives the Indian Navy access to operate in the region to ensure security of sea lanes. Qatar has also participated in courses at the National Defence College (NDC) in India, and has expressed interest in participating in additional training courses.

On initiatives in strengthening cooperation between India and the Gulf countries, Pradhan notes that the Indian Navy has played a significant role in the form of "Naval Diplomacy". As defined by the Indian Ministry of Defence, "Naval Diplomacy entails the use of naval forces in support of foreign policy objectives to build 'bridges of friendship' and strengthen international cooperation on one hand, and to signal capability and intent to deter potential adversaries on the other. The larger purpose of the Navy's diplomatic role is to favorably shape the maritime environment in the furtherance of national interests, in consonance of the foreign policy and national security objectives." Pradhan points out that naval cooperation is also a significant area of military-to-military cooperation in its capacity to secure SLOCs and build ties through maritime bonding. India has been very proactive in engaging with navies of the GCC countries in the form of joint exercises, port calls, goodwill visits to ports, and training programmes.

In his view, specific defence diplomacy initiatives taken to achieve Indian foreign policy objectives have included:

* Collaborating against piracy
* Safety of SLOC
* Securing choke points in the western Indian Ocean
* Dealing with China in the Indian Ocean
* Curtailing Pakistan's influence in the Gulf
* Building security cooperation with GCC countries
* Strengthening India's strategic interests in the Gulf region