On Friday, February 18, 2022, the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) between India and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) will be signed. The agreement will be signed following virtual talks between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the United Arab Emirates Armed Forces, Narendra Modi, Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan.
CEPA between India and UAE
As previously reported, the negotiations between the two countries for CEPA started in September 2021 and at the end of several rounds of talks, the agreement is ready and this will take the bilateral economic and trade relations to the next level. In the Gulf region, this is the first agreement of its kind which is expected to focus on the areas of rules of origin, goods, services, government investments and procurement.
"CEPA could be signed at the end of this week, most likely on Friday," said an official who did not wish to be identified.
Once CEPA is operational, a significant increase in trade and investments is expected. According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MEA), the Gulf country, UAE is India's third largest trading partner and bilateral trade between the two countries is based on data available in the public domain for 2019-20 reached 60 billion dollars, and India's second largest export destination after the United States, reaching an export value of approximately 29 billion USD.
After several rounds of negotiations, the Gulf nation lifted a ban on imports of eggs and poultry products from India in December 2021.
Virtual Summit Agenda
The leaders of the two sides are expected to emphasize their view of the friendly relations between India and the UAE and also discuss bilateral cooperation in various fields. The summit comes at a time when India is celebrating the 75th anniversary of its independence and the UAE its 50th anniversary of its foundation.
The two countries have endeavored to deepen their relationship and have embarked on a comprehensive strategic partnership and strive to further strengthen their cooperation in new areas such as fintech, startups and renewable energy. The UAE is also interested in importing various defense platforms and missiles from India.
Prime Minister Modi has visited that country in 2015, 2018 and 2019 and the Crown Prince visited India twice: 2016 and 2017. There have been several high profile visits from both sides including the visit of external affairs minister Dr S Jaishankar in 2021. Moreover, India is participating with one of the largest pavilions in Dubai Expo 2020.
The two countries have worked closely together in several important areas, including food security and health care during the global pandemic of COVID-19.
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