Deepening mutual trust anchors the India-UAE partnership
The India-UAE strategic partnership is at an advanced stage, marked by deepening cooperation in defence, trade, technology, and energy sectors. This partnership, initiated in 2015, has seen significant growth, with strong political support at the highest levels.
Recent developments in 2025 include the 13th India-UAE Joint Defence Cooperation Committee (JDCC) meeting at the Secretary level, reflecting a major upgrade in bilateral defence ties. The focus is on joint training, maritime security, defence industrial collaboration, and exploration of new technologies such as AI in defence.
Both countries continue to expand multi-sectoral engagements, encompassing trade, investment, connectivity, digital infrastructure, space cooperation, and energy, including nuclear and LNG sectors. Institutionalized financial linkages like UPI-AANI and RuPay-JAYWAN enhance cross-border trade further.
The comprehensive strategic partnership is endorsed strongly by both Prime Minister Narendra Modi and UAE President Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, who have reaffirmed their commitment to deepen cooperation for the shared benefit of their peoples.
Potential future developments in this partnership include enhanced joint defence manufacturing and technology development, expanded collaboration in innovation-driven sectors like AI, space exploration, and digital infrastructure, strengthened maritime security cooperation, deepened economic integration, and broader geopolitical influence.
The India-UAE nexus may play a critical role in shaping the evolving global order by balancing interests between South Asia, the Gulf, and wider Indo-Pacific frameworks.
In addition, a unique collaboration between India, the UAE, Israel, and the United States, known as I2U2, can promote peace and stability in the Western Asian region. The UAE has recognised the role played by Indians in its economic development and recently set aside 26 acres for the building of a temple in Abu Dhabi.
The UAE is India's third largest trading partner after the United States and China, with investments ranging from overseas and onshore oil exploration to the refinery sector. The UAE will eliminate customs tariffs on nearly 80% of Indian goods, and CEPA aims to increase trade between the two nations from $45 billion to $100 billion within 5 years.
The nature of Indian investment in the UAE has shifted towards a knowledge-based economy, opening up potential for expansion in areas such as space, artificial intelligence, health, scientific research, technology, and technology. The UAE is aiming to transition from an oil-dependent economy to a knowledge-based economy.
The UAE has made a strong recommendation of India's candidature for permanent membership of the United Nations Security Council (SC) and reforms of the SC. Abu Dhabi has also promised to assist India in building its strategic infrastructure and is economically supporting India's energy transition programme.
In 2020, the UAE launched its Mars Mission, Hope Probe, making the UAE the first Arab nation to achieve this feat. Space is a new area of collaboration between India and the UAE, with the UAE's first nanosatellite, Nayif-1, launched with the help of PSLV from Sriharikota in 2017.
Israel has improved its relations with the UAE following the Abraham Accords. India has established the first foreign branch of the Indian Institute of Innovation in Abu Dhabi, marking a step towards technological collaboration.
In his address at the India Global Online Forum in the UAE in 2022, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar stated that India and the UAE will play a significant role in reshaping the global order. Anwar Gargash, diplomatic adviser to the president of the UAE, described the India-UAE partnership as a "storage tank of trust".
In summary, India and the UAE are steadily transforming their strategic partnership into a multi-dimensional alliance with significant implications for regional security and global geopolitical alignments, underpinned by consistent high-level political engagement and shared strategic interests.
- The India-UAE strategic partnership's expansion in 2025 includes strengthening defence ties, jointly exploring new technologies like AI, enhancing maritime security, and deepening economic integration.
- The comprehensive strategic partnership between India and the UAE extends to various sectors such as trade, investment, digital infrastructure, space exploration, and energy, including nuclear and LNG sectors.
- In the realm of science and technology, India and the UAE are collaborating in areas like space, artificial intelligence, health, and scientific research, aiming to transition their economies towards a knowledge-based model.
- The India-UAE partnership has a broader geopolitical influence, playing a crucial role in shaping the evolving global order, particularly in balancing interests between South Asia, the Gulf, and wider Indo-Pacific frameworks.
