Despite the conflict in Gaza and its repercussions in the Middle East, India and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) have initiated the initial phase of the ground-breaking India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor (IMEEC). The first meeting between senior officials is anticipated to occur by May 15th.
The two nations will create protocols known as virtual trade corridors during the Joint Secretary level meeting, which will include representatives from trade, shipping, and commerce ministries. This will ensure that containers cleared at the Indian port of Mundra will not be reopened at the UAE’s Fujairah port, but will instead be able to continue to their final destinations in Europe or America.
The IMEEC connects India, UAE, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, and Israel to Europe and the US via trade and exports, with European ports serving as the ultimate endpoint. Backed by the Biden administration, the IMEEC aims to seamlessly merge the markets of these nations.
Following the signing of the inter-governmental framework agreement on the IMEEC by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan on February 14, the two nations have agreed to convene the initial round of discussions in the upcoming month to solidify the procedures for the initial phase of IMEEC. The IMEEC aims to not only connect India and Europe through the Middle East but also enhance the bilateral trade with the UAE, which presently stands at USD 85 billion and continues to expand steadily.
Despite the ongoing Israel-Hamas war, Saudi Arabia finds itself entangled in Middle-East politics. However, India and UAE are making significant progress in their collaboration on IMEEC, aiming to expedite the development of the trade corridor connecting India and the Gulf region. The IMEEC initiative entails transporting containers through Jordan and Saudi Arabia via railroad to Haifa port in Israel, and subsequently to southern European ports such as Naples and Marseilles.
