South Asia Monitor: India and the Gulf: Convergence of Interests - December 4, 2007

December 4, 2007

The countries along the northern shore of the Persian Gulf have become in recent years one of India's major economic relationships, with energy security, financial flows and a large and increasingly diverse Indian expatriate population. These countries account for over half of India's energy imports. In addition, India's military and its security officials are paying increasing attention to this region. The instability in the region between the Gulf and India, leads Indian policymakers to look on this as a region of particular vulnerability for India. U.S. and Indian interests in the Gulf are quite similar, and this is a region where both could benefit from closer consultation.