Kuwait’s Prime Minister Sheikh Jaber Al Mubarak Al Sabah (left), with his Indian counterpart Manmohan Singh at the Presidential Palace in New Delhi, yesterday.
New Delhi: India and Kuwait yesterday discussed cooperation in energy, infrastructure and labour laws, as Prime Minister Manmohan Singh described the Gulf nation as a “most valued partner” and a “close friend”.
The two counties also inked five pacts following talks between the Indian prime minister and his visiting Kuwaiti counterpart Sheikh Jaber Al Mubarak Al Hamad Al Sabah. “India’s relations with Kuwait are rooted in historical links and enriched by the great warmth and goodwill between our peoples,” Manmohan Singh said at a joint media briefing here.
“Today, Kuwait is one of our most valued partners and a close friend in an important region of the world, which is critical for India’s energy security, is among the biggest destinations for our exports and where more than seven million Indians work and earn their livelihood,” he said.
The prime minister also spoke about the Indian nationals, mostly unskilled workers employed in the Gulf country.
“I expressed our gratitude to the Kuwaiti leadership for hosting 700,000 Indian nationals in Kuwait. They are part of Kuwaiti society and are making valuable contributions to Kuwait’s development.
“Given that many of them are unskilled or semi-skilled workers, I requested the prime minister for the continued support of the Kuwaiti leadership to ensure that the full protection of Kuwaiti laws and labour welfare measures is available to them,” he added.
The agreements signed between the two countries included transfer of sentenced prisoners in both countries. Highlighting that Kuwait was the fourth largest supplier of crude oil to India, Manmohan Singh said they discussed the development of a “more strategic partnership in the energy sector”.
“This can be done through long-term supply contracts on mutually beneficial terms and the establishment of upstream and downstream joint ventures in the petroleum and petrochemical sectors. “India has proposed several specific projects for investments by the Kuwait Petroleum Corporation,” the Indian leader said. “I am encouraged by prime minister Sheikh Jaber’s response and I am hopeful that we can translate some of these proposals into concrete symbols of cooperation very soon,” he said.
India also sought Kuwait’s support for early conclusion of a free trade agreement with the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC). At an interactive meeting organised by the industry chambers here, Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma urged visiting Kuwaiti Prime Minister Sheikh Jaber Al Mubarak Al Hamad Al Sabah to play an active role for ensuring an early conclusion of the trade deal.
IANS
