India-Qatar relations- Historical, Economy, Defence, Discord etc

The retired Indian Navy personnel who were arrested in Qatar on charges of espionage has recently been convicted and sentenced to death.

India-Qatar Bilateral relations:

Historical:

• Diplomatic relations between India and Qatar were established in 1973.

Trade & Economy:

• The bilateral trade is about $15 billion
• Qatar exports to India includes LNG (Liquefied natural gas) and LPG (Liquefied Petroleum Gas)
• India exports to Qatar includes chemicals, construction material, iron, copper and food items.
• India is among the top three largest export destinations for Qatar.
• India is among the top three sources of Qatar’s imports, along with China and Japan.
• Qatar supplies 48% of India’s LNG imports, making it the largest supplier of LNG to India.
• India has a negative trade balance with Qatar.

Defence & Security significance- Nuclear, Counterterrorism

• India and Qatar have signed a Defence Cooperation Agreement in 2008, India trains Qatari military at NDC (National Defence College) and IMA (Indian Military Academy).
  • It is yet not renewed.
• “Za’ir-Al-Bahr” is a joint exercise between the Qatari Emiri Navy and the Indian Navy, conducted since 2019.
• India regularly participates in the biennial DIMDEX (Doha International Maritime Defence Exhibition and Conference) held in Qatar.

Cultural significance:

• Qatar has allowed the practice of complementary medicine, including Ayurveda, in Qatar.
• The Indian Cultural Centre (ICC) is an umbrella community organisation of Indian socio-cultural associations in Qatar.
• The Indian Business and Professionals Council (IBPC) is a community-based organization that aims to promote bilateral trade and investment.
• The Indian Community Benevolent Forum (ICBF) was awarded Pravasi Bharatiya Samman in 2011.

Diaspora & other aspects- education, tourism

• Indians are the largest expatriate community in Qatar, working as professionals, doctors, nurses, teachers, bankers apart from labour.
• Indians make up about 25% of the Qatar population.

Bone of contention between the bilateral relations:

• Qatar and Israel have been inimical to each other, and India’s growing ties with Israel have not been taken in positive light by Qatar.
• Qatar has allowed the leaders of Hamas, Hezbollah and Taliban to travel through and stay there, increasing suspicions of its links to terror groups.
• Human Rights of many Indian labours were abused during the FIFA World Cup 2022, many of whom were not compensated for their loss.

[ref-britannica]

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