Tag: Eurasia

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32% of SMEs Attracted by Dubai in 2023 Were From ME, Eurasia

The growing number of SMEs setting up in Dubai from countries around the world underlines the emirate’s importance as a key global hub for trade and investments….reports Asian Lite News

Dubai International Chamber, one of the three chambers operating under the umbrella of Dubai Chambers, has revealed that 32 percent of the total number of Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) attracted to Dubai during 2023 were from the Middle East and Eurasia, with Asia and Australia following close behind at 29 percent.

The growing number of SMEs setting up in Dubai from countries around the world underlines the emirate’s importance as a key global hub for trade and investments.

The figures highlight the diverse range of SMEs from various nationalities and markets that the chamber has attracted to Dubai through its network of international representative offices around the world. Latin America and Europe accounted for 26 percent of the total number of SMEs attracted during 2023, while African markets represented 13 percent of the total.

The chamber also revealed that 17 percent of these SMEs operate within the trade and logistics sector. Additionally, 13 percent operate in the IT sector, specialising in areas such as artificial intelligence, blockchain, robotics, and software.

The food and agricultural sector ranked third, accounting for 10 percent of the total number of SMEs attracted. Healthcare and pharmaceuticals followed with nine percent of the total, while the public services sector came fifth, representing seven percent of the SMEs attracted. The financial services sector, which includes banking, asset and wealth management, fintech, insurance, and consulting firms, ranked sixth at six percent.

Real estate companies ranked seventh in terms of SMEs attracted, representing four percent of the total. The retail, fashion, travel, hospitality, and tourism sectors also accounted for four percent of the SMEs attracted.

Commenting on the figures, Mohammad Ali Rashed Lootah, President and CEO of Dubai Chambers, emphasised Dubai’s reputation on the global stage as a destination for high-value investments. He stated that Dubai’s competitiveness stems from the wise and forward-thinking vision of its leadership, the emirate’s business-friendly environment, the ongoing development of services, favorable legislation, and the diverse range of investment opportunities available.

Lootah added, “Our network of international representative offices in key global markets has effectively promoted Dubai’s business community and highlighted the emirate’s value for companies seeking global expansion. We remain dedicated to contributing to the objectives of the Dubai Economic Agenda (D33), with a primary focus on attracting foreign direct investments in both traditional and emerging sectors.”

Dubai International Chamber successfully attracted 104 SMEs to the emirate during 2023, achieving a remarkable year-over-year (Y-o-Y) growth rate of 550 percent. This impressive increase reflects the chamber’s ongoing contribution to achieving the goals of the Dubai Economic Agenda (D33), which aims to double the size of the emirate’s economy over the coming decade and consolidate Dubai’s position among the top three global cities.

The Dubai International Chamber operates 31 international representative offices, with 16 new offices launched in 2023. This growing network is part of the Dubai Global initiative, which seeks to establish 50 representative offices worldwide by 2030 to support efforts to attract international investments and companies to Dubai.

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Eurasia to be India’s focus at SCO meet

Kampala: External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar Interacts with the Indian community in Kampala, Uganda, on Wednesday, April 13, 2023. (Photo:IANS/Twitter)

Jaishankar to hold talks with Sergey Lavrov, Qin Gang and Iranian counterpart Hossein Amirabdollahian…reports Asian Lite News

In a world undergoing deep transition, India will engage with the eight-nation Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) foreign ministers to secure its interests in Eurasia, where China is the main challenger and pivotal states such as Iran and Russia are keen not to over-rely on Beijing.

For India, the key would be the bilateral meetings that will take place on the sidelines of the foreign ministers’ conference, hosted by External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar. Meetings with Chinese foreign minister and state councillor Qin Gang are already slated. It may not come as a surprise if Jaishankar meets his Iranian counterpart Hossein Amirabdollahian on Thursday, three days after Monday’s day-long but highly significant visit to Tehran by National Security Advisor (NSA) Ajit Doval.

The much-hyped presence of Pakistani foreign minister Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari is likely to prove a damp squib.

First of all, it is unlikely that a bilateral meeting between Zardari and Jaishankar will take place. Even if it does, India’s stand will be clear and terse. A full-blown revival of ties with Pakistan is only possible if Islamabad verifiably terminates the spread of terrorism in India. Till that happens, as a follow-up of the revived ceasefire agreement of 2021, the relationship between the two sides, from an Indian perspective, will remain in deep freeze.

With China, the conversation is essentially about restoring the status quo ante in Eastern Ladakh as it existed in April 2020. Unless Chinese troops withdraw from the friction points that resulted following the incursion of troops from the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) three years ago, a forward movement of ties will remain difficult. In the battle of wills that ensued three years ago, the Chinese have now arrived at a position that India should de-link the border incursion from the other tracks of the relationship, including economy, trade and investment.

On the contrary, India has taken the position that it is impossible to separate the current incursion from the overall normalisation of ties. Nevertheless, the conversation could turn interesting to smoothen Chinese President Xi Ping’s visit for the SCO summit in New Delhi on July 4.

Jaishankar’s talks with his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov is expected to explore ideas that will smoothen the path of burgeoning India-Russia trade following the Ukraine war. India has been making bulk purchases of Russian oil, taking annual trade between the two to around $30 billion dollars.

But payments through the rupee-rouble mechanism is yet to fructify. The two sides have also been discussing digital payments using the Mir and Rupay gateways. Russia is also keen that India steps up its investments in the Russian Far East, known for its large energy reserves including oil, gas, and coal. India and Russia are also exploring early activation of the sea route from Chennai to Vladivostok, the heart of the Russian Far East.

The two are also likely to discuss the current status of the Ukraine war, and possible scenarios that may emerge in the future during their talks.

Talks with Iran, if they materialise, are likely to focus on deepening India’s foothold at the Chabahar port and improving the access to Afghanistan along the Chabahar route, including the role of a railway that will move northwards from Chabahar.

There are other geopolitical considerations that are at play as well. For instance, it is not in India’s interest that sanctions hit Iran inordinately deepens its relations with China, which has already expressed its keenness to invest billions of dollars in West Asia’s pivotal state.

The Chinese footprint has also expanded after Beijing intervened to bring about a thaw in Iran-Saudi Arabia ties. India would therefore need to establish a strategic anchor of its own in Iran to dissuade Tehran from allowing China a permanent presence along its Indian Ocean coastline, as a supplement to its presence in Pakistan’s Gwadar port.

The foreign ministers’ meeting in Goa is taking place ahead of the G-7 summit in Hiroshima, where western nations are likely to exhort India to modify its position of neutrality on the Ukraine war. Before that happens, India may have an opportunity in Goa to fortify its stakes in Eurasia, which enables it to strike a better balance in its ties with the West.

Meanwhile, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov arrived at Goa’s Dabolim airport on Thursday morning to attend the two-day-long meeting of foreign ministers of the member states of the Shangai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) which begins in today in the coastal State

Lavrov, who was accompanied by a delegation is scheduled to hold a bilateral with External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar later today. Foreign ministers of China and Pakistan are among those who will attend this meeting in person. The ministers will discuss a range of important geopolitical issues, such as economic cooperation among SCO members and regional security.

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India gearing up to host SCO Summit in outreach to Eurasia

The SCO member countries represent around 42% of the world population and 25% of the global GDP…reports Asian Lite News

India will host the 8-nation summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) on July 4. The summit will take place in New Delhi, highly placed sources told India Narrative. The SCO comprises India, China, Russia, Pakistan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan and Tajikistan, covering most of Eurasia. Iran will become the ninth member of the grouping from April this year.

The SCO member countries represent around 42% of the world population and 25% of the global GDP.

Nevertheless, the member states have differed on China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), with India being at the forefront of objecting to Beijing’s pan-Eurasian initiative, citing issues of sovereignty. New Delhi has strongly opposed the China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), which passes through Gilgit-Baltistan—a part of undivided Kashmir, which had acceded to India in 1947—but was militarily annexed by Pakistan.

Nevertheless, the Regional Anti-Terrorist Structure (RATS), a permanent body based in Uzbekistan, has been functioning fairly smoothly. RATS has been found useful in building counter-terrorism capacity of the SCO member states.

It also holds annual Joint Anti-Terrorist Exercises since 2006 to help member countries remaining safe from acts of terrorism. By the month end, India will host a meeting of the National Security Advisors of the grouping, where the big-picture of regional terrorism is expected to be discussed.

The organisation has also sharpened its focus on developing tourism, leveraging the grouping’s civilizational strengths. Currently, India is hosting the SCO Tourism Ministers’ Meeting (TMM) at Kashi (Varanasi), which has been designated as the first cultural capital of the SCO.

The two-day meeting is expected to yield a Tourism Joint Action Plan for member countries. It is expected to focus on branding SCO tourism, promotion of the cultural heritage of the SCO member states, information exchange using digital technology as well as medical and health tourism. During 2022 Samarkand SCO summit Prime Minister Narendra Modi had encouraged the SCO on the use and development of traditional medicine as well as building diversified and resilient supply chains.

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A connected Eurasia is closer to reality

New Delhi has for long been batting for the improvement of the transport and logistics architecture of the Eurasian region, reports Ateet Sharma…reports Asian Lite News

Discussions on regional connectivity, primarily on the development of strategic Chabahar Port as a commercial transit hub for the landlocked countries of Central Asia, were high on the agenda of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s meetings with the Presidents of Iran and Uzbekistan in Samarkand Friday evening.

New Delhi has for long been batting for the improvement of the transport and logistics architecture of the Eurasian region and since the takeover of operations by India Ports Global Chabahar Free Zone (IPGCFZ) in December 2018, the Shahid Behesti Terminal of Chabahar Port in Iran has witnessed a gradual increase in transit traffic between Central and South Asia through the transportation corridor.

Last December, during the second Trilateral Working Group meeting between India, Iran, and Uzbekistan on the joint use of Chabahar Port, India emphasised its linking to the International North-South Transport Corridor (INSTC) – a mechanism that allows Uzbekistan and other Central Asian countries to connect to Chabahar for the transit of goods.

On the sidelines of the 22nd Meeting of the Council of Heads of State of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) in Samarkand on Friday, PM Modi, Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi and Uzbekistan President Shavkat Mirziyoyev underlined the historic and civilisational connections between their nations and exploiting the full potential of Chabahar Port to further strengthen the bond.

“The two leaders reviewed the progress in the development of the Shahid Behesti terminal, Chabahar Port, and underscored the importance of bilateral cooperation in the field of regional connectivity,” PM Modi’s office said after the first meeting between the two leaders since Raisi took over as Iran’s President in 2021.

India has also utilised the Chabahar port to ship lakhs of tonnes of wheat and pulses as humanitarian food assistance to Afghanistan since 2020, especially during the Covid-19 pandemic.

During his meeting with the Iranian President on Friday, Prime Minister Modi reiterated India’s priorities of providing humanitarian assistance to the people of Afghanistan.

“Ayatollah Raisi described the current relations between the two countries as friendly and cordial and added: using the existing capacities in the oil and gas industry, transportation, and especially the Chabahar-Central Asia transit route, as well as cooperation in regional and international issues that the two countries are concerned about,” said a statement from Raisi’s office after the meeting with PM Modi.

Connectivity, including greater usage of the Chabahar port and the International North-South Transport Corridor, was also considered the key to unlocking the full potential of trade and investment between India and Uzbekistan during Modi-Mirziyoyev bilateral meeting.

“Particular attention was paid to strengthening partnership relations between the regions of the two countries. It was noted that Uzbekistan is interested in strengthening transport links with India, including using the port of Chabahar,” Uzbekistan President’s office said after the two leaders discussed the prospects of further strengthening of strategic partnership.

As both countries mark the 30th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations, the leaders indicated that the volume of mutual trade is increasing with a 30 per cent growth in 2022 so far.

With Chabahar Port and INSTC providing a more economical and stable route for landlocked countries of the Central Asian region, it is believed that India’s efforts on having an inter-connected Eurasia will bear fruits in the coming years, especially as it takes over the rotating SCO Presidency for the first time till September 2023.

(The content is being carried under an arrangement with indianarrative.com)

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