NEW DELHI: In a move that could go a long way in having a strong ally in the Arabian gulf, Foreign Affairs Minister SM Krishna began a three day visit to the conglomerate of Gulf states with an eye on tourism promotion, avoidance of double taxation and consular issues. Besides these bilateral subjects, India and the UAE will discuss issues such as deepening economic and energy cooperation as well as defense cooperation. Krishna will also interact with heads of the Indian missions in the region at a conference in Abu Dhabi. India and UAE have had cordial relations for decades now fuelled by the over 1.75 million Indians who live in the UAE and the around $2 billion that the UAE investors have pumped into India in areas ranging from energy, services and programming to construction and tourism. Krishna and his UAE counterpart Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, will preside over the 10th Session of the India-United Arab Emirates Joint Commission for Technical & Economic cooperation (JCM) in Abu Dhabi. The JCM held either in New Delhi or Abu Dhabi alternatively. “Some key agreements on double taxation and consular issues are to be signed during the visit,” the external affairs ministry said here Saturday. The trade between India and the UAE in 2011 alone was estimated to be over $67 billion. India and the UAE were each other's largest trade partners in 2010-2011, this in addition to the UAE being the tenth largest foreign investor in India. India desperately needs a close ally in the Gulf States, given that Arab countries are unlikely to get too cozy with India, in view of the country's rivalry with Pakistan. India has already been dealing with UAE in the field of defense. There have been goodwill visits of Indian Navy ships to the UAE from time to time. In recent years, bilateral defense cooperation has been strengthened. Cricket is another issue that has brought the two countries together, with India having played many successful games against Pakistan at Sarjah in the UAE.
