India and Kuwait established a Joint Ministerial Commission that will impart new direction to ties. The two countries also said they were looking at setting up new panels to boost trade and investments and cooperation in defence and security.
A statement from the Indian foreign ministry said Indian foreign minister S Jaishankar and his visiting Kuwaiti counterpart, Ahmed Nasser Al-Mohammad Al-Sabah “reviewed all aspects of India-Kuwait bilateral relationship and discussed regional developments,” during a meeting. “They also explored ways and means to impart further dynamism in the traditional and friendly ties between the two countries,” it said.
Jaishankar invited more investments from Kuwait in areas ranging from energy, infrastructure, food security, healthcare and education.
At the end of the visit, the two countries announced the setting up of a “Joint Ministerial Commission at the level of Foreign Ministers to steer the relationship,” it said.
“The Joint Commission Meeting will act as an umbrella for all bilateral institutional engagements such as Foreign Office Consultations and Joint Working Groups (JWGs). Apart from the existing Joint Working Groups on hydrocarbons, manpower and mobility, and healthcare, new JWGs on trade and investments, defence and security are envisaged to be established,” it said.
Foreign Minister Nasser also handed over a letter addressed to Prime Minister Narendra Modi to Jaishankar which was fro,m the Kuwaiti Prime Minister Sheikh Sabah Khaled Al-Hamad Al-Sabah, the statement said.
The Kuwaiti Foreign Minister thanked India for supplying Kuwait with 200,000 doses of Covishield vaccines in February to battle the covid-19 pandemic. Jaishankar on his part thanked the Kuwaiti leadership for hosting a large number of expatriate Indians and taking care of them during the Covid-19 pandemic, the statement said.
The Indian minister “Hoped that Indian community will be able to resume travel to Kuwait in larger numbers soon,” it said.
India is amongst the largest trading partners of Kuwait.
