The Amir of Qatar, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, accompanied by a high-powered delegation of key ministers and businessmen, was in New Delhi on February 17-18, 2025 on a state visit. This was his second visit after the peaceful transition of power in Doha in 2013 when his father, Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, abdicated in his favour. The highlight of the visit was the upgrading of India-Qatar ties to a Strategic Partnership, in line with other Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries such as Saudi Arabia, UAE, Oman and Kuwait — with all of which the government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi has assiduously deepened relations since taking office in 2014.
This last decade has seen regular high-level exchanges between the two countries, including two by PM Modi in 2016 and 2024 and a visit by the then Qatari PM Sheikh Abdullah bin Nasser bin Khalifa al Thani, in December 2016. These visits, as also External Affairs Minister Dr. S Jaishankar’s frequent visits for bilateral engagements and conferences, have resulted in a number of agreements principally in areas related to economic and consular ties. They also feature setting up of institutional mechanisms to maintain the momentum in cooperation, such as Foreign Office Consultations, Joint Working Groups and Task Forces on energy, trade and commerce, investment, security and law enforcement, health and labour and manpower development.
The readout of the Joint Statement (JS) issued at the end of Sheikh Tamim’s visit, besides announcing agreement on establishing a strategic partnership, indicates reinvigorated intent to cooperate in the fields of energy, investment and trade. The Joint Working Group on Trade and Commerce is to be elevated to a Ministerial Joint Commission with a target to diversify and double trade within five years from the current $14 billion, almost 90% of which is dominated by energy related supplies from Qatar. Exploring the possibility of settlement of trade in respective currencies is also on the table. While India is currently negotiating a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with the GCC, the Joint Statement mentions the possibility of a standalone Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement, such as India currently has with the UAE, and is in negotiations with Oman.