India-Saudi Diplomatic Corridor

Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan visited India on November 12-13 to hold official talks with his Indian counterpart S Jaishankar. During their discussions the ministers covered bilateral, regional and global developments. The press notes relating to the Faisal-Jaishankar meeting issued by the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) and the Saudi Foreign Ministry (SFM) emphsise the desire of the leadership of the two countries to take the bilateral relationship to a higher level. They also indicate that the two ministers dwelt on—and this is not surprising---the regional situation. What they do not indicate is the substance of what either of them said. Before an assessment is made on this aspect it would be helpful for purposes of noting the different styles of diplomatic articulation of the two countries if the relevant portions of the press releases are quoted. This is because inferences can be made from them.

The MEA press release states “During the meeting, both sides discussed avenues to strengthen the Strategic Partnership between India and Saudi Arabia in the areas including trade, investment, energy, defence, security, culture and consular matters. They also exchanged views on regional and international issues of mutual interest”.

The SFM press note mentions “During the meeting, His Highness delivered a speech emphasising that the establishment of the Strategic Partnership Council between Saudi Arabia and India, led by His Royal Highness Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has paved the way for a new era of cooperation across various fields. His Highness Prince Faisal expressed his aspiration to enhance the council’s capabilities and efficiency to achieve common goals. His Highness also highlighted the importance of coordination and collaboration on issues of mutual interest, particularly in areas related to international peace, security, and economic development. His Highness expressed his confidence that strengthening cooperation would serve the two countries’ mutual interests “.

It is striking that the MEA press release only states that the two leaders “exchanged views” on regional and international issues of “mutual interest”. On the other hand the SFM press note goes much further. It clarifies that Faisal expressed the view that it was important for the two countries to coordinate and collaborate on international issues relating to global peace and security. For the Saudis, at present, no international issue is more important than that of situation in Gaza and West Asia in the wake of developments after Hamas’s attack on Israel on October 7, 2023. It can be inferred from the language of the Saudi release that Faisal pressed Jaishankar that India should use its good offices with the Israelis to end their action in Gaza which has led to the loss of around 44,000 lives till now. It has also led to the cleansing of the northern part of the strip.

India has gradually used stronger language against Israel and urged that the parties should adopt the path of diplomacy and dialogue. It has not, however, condemned the Israeli action in Gaza. On the other hand Saudi Arabia which considers itself as a principal leader, if not the main leader, of the Islamic world has condemned Israel outright. Indeed, Saudi Arabia recently asserted that Israel was committing genocide in Gaza. Traditionally Saudi diplomacy’s characteristic has been the use of deliberate and calibrated use of language. It has also always maintained below the surface contacts with Israel. Hence, for Saudi Arabia to accuse Israel of genocide shows that it can no longer avoid the harshest criticism of Israel if it wishes that other Islamic countries do not accuse it of abandoning the Palestinian cause.

India has interests in Saudi Arabia which are being harmed by the Gaza war. At the same time it has major stakes in Israel too. It has therefore tread a careful line. There is no doubt that the Hamas attack was horrendous and inexcusable but India has now got to, at least privately, press the Israeli leadership that their present action in Gaza has to stop. The fact is that the suffering of the people of Gaza on account of Israel’s actions over the past thirteen months has pushed the Hamas attack into the background of the memory of the majority of the world’s people who are focusing on the pain and tragedy which Israel is inflicting. It appears that for vast sections of popular opinion the Israeli action crossed the limits of proportionate response a long time ago.

The two ministers would have informally discussed how Trump would approach the West Asia situation. His animus towards Iran is well known and has not waned in the four years he has been out of office. His firm connections with Israel are also clear as is his positive disposition towards Saudi Arabia and the UAE. It was during his Presidency that the Abraham Accords were done in 2020. All this was directed against Israel and its proxies. He had also ordered a strike against Qassim Sulemani the head of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards in January 2020. Now, Saudi Arabia and Iran have had a rapprochement mediated by the Chinese. The pace of their interaction has increased. Indeed, the head of the Saudi Defence Forces recently visited Iran. With Trump’s election victory the Saudis and the UAE may be compelled to re-evaluate their policies. India also would have to carefully navigate its Iran policy.

Finally, one connectivity project on which India placed great importance was IMEC—the India-Middle East-Europe Corridor. That included that transshipment of goods from India to the UAE and thence by rail to a Mediterranean port (Haifa, in Israel was being mentioned) to Europe. The Gaza war has stalled IMEC and only time will tell if it would be really revived.