New Delhi, Nov 9 (IANS) Kuwaiti Prime Minister Sheikh Jaber Al-Mubarak Al-Hamad Al-Sabah, on a visit to India, Saturday called on President Pranab Mukherjee at Rashtrapati Bhavan.
An official statement from the Rashtrapati Bhavan said that the president said the visit will provide fresh impetus to bilateral relations.
President Mukherjee said relations between India and Kuwait go back many centuries and are based on “mutual trust and respect”.
“There is great potential to deepen this relationship through joint ventures in the field of petrochemicals and refineries in India. Economic relations must be diversified to industry and manufacturing. India requires around one trillion dollars’ investment in infrastructure and Kuwaiti investments are most welcome,” the president said.
“Indian companies today have expertise in various fields and can also invest in Kuwait. There is wide scope for mutual investments,” the president said.
Around 10 percent of India’s oil imports comes from Kuwait. Bilateral trade in the energy sector is over US$ 15 billion.
President Mukherjee called for expanding cooperation to new sectors which are of mutual interest. He also said the Indian community in Kuwait is contributing to Kuwait’s development and progress, and serves as a useful bridge between the two countries.
The statement said the prime minister of Kuwait reciprocated the sentiments expressed by the president.
“He said there is great potential for strengthening relations and Kuwait is optimistic in this regard. He praised the large Indian community in Kuwait as hard working, disciplined and a model for others,” the statement said.
Al-Sabah arrived in India on a four-day visit Thursday.
This is the first head of government-level visit from Kuwait to India since the post of Crown Prince and prime minister was bifurcated in 2003.