Amir's Visit To India Strengthen Historic Ties: Qatar's Ambassador

New Delhi: Ambassador of Qatar to India H E Mohammed Hassan Jabir Al Jabir emphasised that the visit of Amir H H Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani to India is anticipated to enhance bilateral relationship further.

Speaking to QNA, the Ambassador highlighted that the visit is in fact not the first one, as H H the Amir so far paid an official visit to India in 2015, during which cooperation was beefed up in all fields. Al Jabir pointed out that visit of Prime Minister of India H E Narendra Modi, to Doha in February 2024, was an opportunity to expand the scope of bilateral cooperation in key sectors of trade, investment, technology and culture.

He underlined that H H the Amir's visit is highly significant in light of the shared commitment to broadening the horizons of cooperation and fostering the strategic partnership between the two nations for both peoples.

The visit is a crucial opportunity to share perspectives on regional and global issues, strengthen trade and investment cooperation in critical sectors, such as energy, technology and industry, in addition to discussing avenues for addressing global challenges, such as climate change, food insecurity and other topics prioritised by the State of Qatar, Al Jabir highlighted.

Regarding the Qatar-India economic cooperation, the Ambassador emphasised that the two nations share evolving economic relationship, which has been remarkably thriving over the past years. He indicated that volume of trade exchange between the two countries during 2023-2024 reached approximately $14bn, making India as Qatar's second-largest trading partner.

He highlighted that roughly 20,000 Indian firms operate in Qatar, underscoring Qatar's incredible capability of drawing foreign investments, with Qatar hosting a sizable Indian community of approximately 800,000 people, thereby strengthening socio-economic ties. Additionally, Qatar Investment Authority estimates its Indian investments at $4bn across various sectors, with significant growth prospects are expected following this visit. The businessmen forum is poised to convene on the sidelines of H H the Amir's visit, in pursuit of reinforcing the economic cooperation, with the objective of deliberating on cooperation prospects in wide-ranging sectors, such as trade, industry, logistics, information technology, digital and financial services, healthcare, education, and transportation, Al Jabir noted.

The forum is not merely a platform to shore up economic cooperation, but rather a salient step toward broadening new horizons of shared investment between the two countries.

Al Jabir indicated that an array of significant memorandums of understanding are expected to be signed during this visit to enhance bilateral cooperation in a variety of fields, including elevating bilateral relations to the strategic partnership in all fields, particularly in politics, economics, investment, sports, education, and culture, in addition to fostering trade exchange and boosting investments between the two nations, ultimately benefiting their economies significantly.

He highlighted that the energy sector, especially natural gas is one of the foremost sectors that constitute the bedrock of this bilateral relationship, noting that Qatar is the largest supplier of LNG to India, accounting for over 40% of India's total imports of this critical resource. In February 2024, the two nations signed a long-term agreement with the value of $78bn as a critical step toward exporting 7.5 million tonnes of Qatar's LNG to India annually for 20 years starting from 2028, he outlined.

Al Jabir underlined that the visit is a foremost opportunity to enhance trade exchange between the two nations, as the Indian market abounds with massive growth potential, positioning itself as one of the most expansive markets globally, thereby opening unlimited opportunities to increase the volume of trade exchange between the two countries.

By the same token, Qatar possesses a superb investment climate making it the perfect destination for Indian firms that seek promising investment opportunities in numerous critical sectors, thereby increasing the flow of Indian investments to the Qatari market.

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