INDIA WATCH, JULY 2018, ISSUE NO. 102

POLITICAL  

IRAN

US tells India, China to end oil imports from Iran by November 4

Washington, Wednesday, 27 June 2018

The US has told India and other countries to cut oil imports from Iran to “zero” by November 4 or face sanctions, making it clear that there would be no waivers to anyone. Source: The Hindu

Iran to remain integral part of India’s foreign policy 

New Delhi, Saturday, 30 June 2018

India can live without Iranian energy, but Iran will remain an important part of India’s foreign policy. As President Donald Trump takes an extreme view of Iran sanctions, it promised to constrain India’s manoeuvring space significantly if it is not careful. Source: Times of India

ISRAEL

Top of Form

India Army said to revive Israeli Spike missile purchase plan

New Delhi, Friday, 1 June 2018

India is set to place an order for Israeli Spike missiles to boost its anti-tank capability, a person with knowledge of the matter said. The Indian Army wants to buy the Spike missile + as a “stop gap” measure before the Defence Research and Development Organisation can come up with an indigenous anti-tank missile within the next three years. The proposal is awaiting government approval. Source: Times of India

India Votes in Favour of UN Resolution Condemning Israeli Force against Palestinians

New Delhi, Thursday, 14 June 2018

India voted in favour of a UN General Assembly resolution that blamed Israel for “excessive” use of force against Palestinian civilians in Gaza, but abstained on a US-backed failed amendment which sought to also condemn violence by Hamas. The 193-member UNGA approved a resolution with 120 votes in favour that deplored Israel for using “excessive, disproportionate and indiscriminate force” against Palestinian civilians, particularly in the Gaza strip. Source: The Wire

Oman to grant visa on arrival to Indians holding valid visa of US, UK, Canada, Australia, Schengen or Japan

Tuesday, 12 June 2018

Oman has relaxed visa rules for Indians and would grant unsponsored tourist visa on arrival to Indians who reside in or hold valid entry visas for the US, Canada, Australia, UK, Japan and Schengen nations. Source: moneycontrol.com

YEMEN

Indian Navy sends ship to Socotra Island in Yemen to rescue 38 stranded Indians

New Delhi, Sunday, 3 June 2018

Around 38 Indians are stranded in and around Socotra Island in Yemen after a cyclone hit the area and the Indian Navy has launched an operation to rescue them. A Navy spokesperson said INS Sunayna, which was deployed in Western Arabian Sea, is now heading towards Socotra for the humanitarian and disaster relief operation.  Source: Hindustan Times  

Arab group wants India on board in Yemen

New Delhi, Monday, 18 June 2018

The Arab coalition which is fighting to secure the strategic Yemeni port of Hodeidah will be reaching out to India for its support. A formal discussion regarding this would be held during the visit of the Foreign Minister of the UAE) next week. Ahmed Albanna, Emirati Ambassador to India said the Operation at Hodeidah would secure the energy lanes of India with the Gulf, and that the Arab coalition had sourced large quantity of relief material from India to help the Yemeni population. Source: The Hindu

India on Gulf outreach as injured Yemeni soldiers ready to fly in

New Delhi, Saturday, 30 June 2018

India has teamed up with the UAE in providing major humanitarian and post-traumatic medical support to the soldiers of Yemen who were injured in the on-going war against the rebels of that country, a source familiar with the on-going effort told The Hindu. “This is an initiative to showcase medical diplomacy of India and humanitarian work by the government of UAE and Red Crescent. This major service is possible because of the full coordination between India and the UAE.” Source: The Hindu

ECONOMIC

IRAN

India, Iran discuss revival of rupee-rial payment mechanism

New Delhi, Monday, 4 June 2018

To get around the sanctions imposed by the US last month, India and Iran discussing a possible re-activation of the rupee-rial payment mechanism established six years ago to deal with the Western sanctions that were subsequently lifted in 2015. Source: Business Line

India preparing for cut in oil imports from Iran

New Delhi, Thursday, 28 June 2018

India’s oil ministry has asked refiners to prepare for a ‘drastic reduction or zero’ imports of Iranian oil from November, industry sources said. This is the first sign that New Delhi is responding to a push by the US to cut trade ties with Iran. Source: Reuters

KUWAIT

Indian engineers fear loss of jobs in Kuwait

Kuwait City, Saturday, 23 June 2018

The decision issued by Public Authority for Manpower earlier in March, instructing labour departments to discontinue issuing work permits to expatriate engineers who do not have a no-objection certificate from Kuwait Engineers Society, may affect thousands of Indian engineers working in Kuwait including those in senior positions. According to a report, Kuwait Engineers Society will issue a no-objection certificate only if the institutions from where the engineering degrees were awarded are recognized by India’s National Board of Accreditation (NBA). Source: Arab Times

OMAN

India-Oman trade balance rises in latter’s favour

Muscat, Saturday, 9 June 2018

The Cabinet has approved a MoU with Oman on cooperation in the peaceful use of outer space. The agreement will open doors for Oman to take the help of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) in its space research programme. Source: Muscat Daily 

India-Oman trade balance rises in latter’s favour

Muscat, Sunday, 10 June 2018

The trade balance between India and Oman has increased over US$50,000 in favour of the Sultanate, data from an Indian government website has revealed. The bilateral trade rose 3.6 per cent from $3.8 billion in 2015-16 to $4 billion in 2016-17. Oman’s major exports to India are oil, its derivatives and fertilisers. India’s exports to Oman include minerals, machinery, textiles, spices, tea, coffee etc. Source: Times of Oman

QATAR

Qatar Airways will soon apply to launch airline in India 

Sydney, Wednesday, 6 June 2018

Qatar Airways will ‘soon’ move an application to launch a full-service airline in India for domestic operations, according to its chief Akbar Al Baker. He said that the proposed airline would be fully financed by the Qatari sovereign fund and would have Indians heading the board and as most of its members. Source:  Times of India

SAUDI ARABIA

Why Indian workers from Saudi Arabia are coming back home

Hyderabad, Thursday, 7 June 2018

A sudden spurt in the number of children of NRI workers from Saudi Arabia taking admissions in schools in India has raised fears of an exodus. A number of schools in Hyderabad have reported a rise in the numbers particularly from Saudi Arabia. Living in Saudi Arabia could get expensive for NRIs as the kingdom would impose a family tax on dependents of expats from July 1 and this might force Indians NRI workers, the largest expat group in Saudi Arabia, to consider returning to India. Source: The Economic Times

ADNOC joins Aramco in $44 billion Indian refinery project 

New Delhi, Tuesday, 26 June 2018

The Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) on Monday signed a memorandum of understanding with Saudi Arabian Oil Company (Saudi Aramco) to acquire a stake in India’s $44-billion West Coast refinery. Both companies are also looking to invest in the entire value chain, including fuel retailing, here. At the same time, Indian oil companies as a consortium will be bidding for hydrocarbon fields in UAE. Source: Financial Express

UAE

UAE plans to invest $75 billion in India – UAE Foreign Minister on a weeklong visit to India from June 24-30

New Delhi, Saturday, 23 June 2018

Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Foreign Minister of the United Arab Emirates arrives in India on 24 June on an official visit. After his official engagements in Delhi, he visited Gujarat, Maharashtra, Telangana, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka where, apart from his other programmes, will meet with Governor/Chief Ministers to discuss matters of mutual interest. Source: Times of India

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As part of its editorial policy, the MEI@ND standardizes spelling and date formats to make the text uniformly accessible and stylistically consistent. The views expressed here are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views/positions of the MEI@ND. Editor, MEI@ND: P R Kumaraswamy