India and Kuwait to establish Joint Commission to boost ties

 The Joint Commission will formulate a framework for strengthening ties in the sectors such as trade, energy, investment, information technology, and manpower and labour.

The Governments of India and Kuwait on March 18, 2021, decided to establish a Joint Ministerial Commission. It will formulate a framework for strengthening ties in the sectors such as trade, energy, investment, information technology, and manpower and labour.

The decision of forming a commission was taken during a ministerial meet between the External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar and his Kuwaiti counterpart Sheikh Ahmed Nasser Al- Mohammed Al-Sabah who has been on a visit to India.

Kuwait’s Foreign Minister also handed over a letter to S. Jaishankar. The letter was from the Prime Minister of Kuwait Sheikh Sabah Khaled Al-Hamad Al-Sabah addressed to PM Modi and it thanked India for supplying Kuwait with 2,00,000 doses of ‘Made in India’ Covishield Coronavirus vaccine.

India-Kuwait Joint Commission:

• The Joint Ministerial Commission between India and Kuwait will be tasked to formulate the required basis for strengthening ties between two nations in areas of energy, economy, trade, human resources, investment, finance, manpower and labour, IT, culture, education, health, defence, and security.

• The commission at the level of External Affairs Ministers will facilitate the relationship between the two nations. It will work as an umbrella body for all the institutional engagements.

• The Joint Commission will also be reviewing the agreements concluded between the two nations and will find suitable solutions for any form of issues in their implementation.

• Apart from the existing JWG on manpower, hydrocarbons, healthcare, and mobility, the new Joint Working Groups on defence and security, trade and investment, etc. are also expected to be established.

• The Joint Commission Meeting will be held regularly for reviewing all the bilateral matters. It will be held in each country alternatively and will be co-chaired by the Foreign Ministers of India and Kuwait.

Meeting between the Foreign Ministers of India and Kuwait: Key Highlights

• In their deliberations, the Foreign Ministers of India and Kuwait explored ways to impart further dynamism in the friendly and traditional ties.

• The External Affairs Minister of India also invited more investments from Kuwait into India in the fields such as infrastructure, energy, healthcare, food security, and education.

• Before the talks, Al-Sabah while talking about the relationship between the two nations, mentioned that the catalog of cooperation between Kuwait and India is vast and there are lots of avenues that can be explored further.

• During the meeting, both sides emphasized the need for enhancing cooperation in the area of health security.

• The ministers also reviewed the status of international and regional developments and also agreed to cooperate closely on the issues of mutual interest in the multilateral forums.

India-Kuwait Relations:

India is one of the major trading partners of Kuwait.  According to the Ministry of External Affairs, there are significant opportunities that will further strengthen and will deepen ties in sectors such as health, trade, energy, science and technology, defence and security, culture, cybersecurity, IT, tourism, and education.

During the ministerial meeting, S. Jaishankar also thanked the government and leadership of Kuwait for hosting a large Indian community in Kuwait and for taking care of them at the time of the COVID-19 pandemic. It further signifies the healthy relations between the two nations.