India's ties with the countries of the Gulf go back several millennia, when their ancestors jointly traversed the waters of the Indian Ocean and set up commercial, religious, intellectual and philosophical interactions that shaped a common civilisational identity, which remains vibrant to this day.

One key factor in the resilience of these relations has been the fact that these ties have been constantly refreshed to meet contemporary needs. If India has been the traditional provider of foodstuffs, textiles and items of elegant living to the region, it also, after the oil boom of the 1970s, became a major source of human resource to facilitate the dramatic expansion of infrastructure, industrial and welfare facilities in the oil-producing countries of the Gulf. Indians, thus, are the largest expatriate community in the region.

In turn, as India's economic growth has risen to between 6-8% per year, it has become a major market for the energy resources of the Gulf, with the Gulf suppliers currently meeting nearly 80% of India's oil imports.

Now, after 20 years of the new century, with attendant changes in the world order, the powerful implications of technological innovation and globalisation, and the simultaneous expressions of national and sub-national identities and aspirations, there is a need to reshape Gulf-India relations. It is important that mutual interests are safeguarded and the region is better prepared to cope with the contradictory pulls of globalised connectivity and national assertions, amidst emerging conflictual scenarios, particularly in the Middle East.

These new challenges call for a fresh look at how the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and India can work together to define and pursue a new role for mutual advantage and regional interest. They have expanded their relationship beyond the traditional areas of energy, trade and community. They are tapping new opportunities in investments, infrastructure development, cooperation in space, nuclear and renewable energy technology, arid agriculture, and, above all, enhanced defence and security links.

The two countries have framed these new relations in a ‘Comprehensive Strategic Partnership’ agreement that was signed in New Delhi in January 2017. Going beyond the ‘bilateral’, the agreement envisages a wider engagement to address regional and global challenges.

This chapter examines three specific areas of collaboration envisaged in the agreement: food security; enhanced maritime security cooperation in the Indian Ocean; and the promotion of regional stability through confidence-building measures among contending parties and shaping, over time, of cooperative security arrangements in the Middle East.