AdvertisementIn practice, India’s record tells a more complicated story. Part of it was grounded in Delhi’s genuine Cold War contradictions with Washington — over Pakistan, Kashmir, and nuclear non-proliferation. The Gulf Arab states’ reliance on the US for security against various forms of radicalism, and the gradual normalisation of relations between Israel and several Arab countries, have altered the regional picture. Political support for Arabs was an important principle articulated at the very outset of independent India’s foreign policy. Eight turbulent decades later in the Middle East, it has acquired a new meaning — in the form of a deepening interdependence between India and the Gulf Arab states.

Source: Indian Express March 11, 2026 12:15 UTC