For centuries, India and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) have been linked by trade, migration, culture and the Arabian Sea-ties that have strengthened over the past decade into one of India’s most dynamic and strategic alliances. Today, the UAE is home to 4.5 million Indians. It is India’s third-largest trading partner, its second-largest source of remittances, a major destination for Indian exports and a crucial source of investment and energy. Moreover, its location at the crossroads of the Gulf and the Indian Ocean gives the relationship profound geopolitical significance.
As India’s ambassador to the UAE from 2016 to 2019, Navdeep Suri had a ringside view of the landmark developments that shaped relations between the two countries. In this book he draws upon his diplomatic experience, interviews with key participants and extensive archival research to explore how historic links with western India laid the commercial foundations of the relationship; how the use of the Indian rupee across the Gulf reflected India’s central place in the region’s economy; how the gold trade drew the two countries closer; and how their respective perceptions of Pakistan influenced their political ties.
Part diplomatic memoir, part history, Bridging the Gulf not only brings to life the personalities, negotiations and historical forces that have shaped India-UAE relations, it also presents the definitive story of one of India’s most vital international partnerships.
