UAE Parliamentarian Ali Rashid Al Nuaimi has said the recent announcement of reciprocal tariff by US President Donald Trump will provide an opportunity to deepen bilateral ties between India and his nation.

Speaking to ANI, the Parliamentarian said: "This (US tariff) brings opportunity for the relationship between our two countries. The bilateral relationship should take advantage."

“We do understand that, but at the same time, there is always opportunity. Here in the UAE, whenever there are challenges, there are opportunities. And we see that both countries, UAE and India, should try to look into the opportunity that these challenges are bringing to the world,” the UAE Parliamentarian and Educator, Chairman, Defense Affairs, Interior and Foreign Affairs Committee, UAE Federal National Council, said.

“A relationship where you will have the government-government relations, private sector-private sector, and people to people. We have a history. You know, on many occasions, we don’t need an agreement. The engagement is there. Actually, what the CEPA did was open new avenues for both countries and for the people, and this is where the added value is for both sides,” he said.

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India-UAE Commercial Relations 

As per the Indian Embassy in UAE website, India and UAE have shared trade links through the centuries. The trade, which was dominated by traditional items such as dates, pearl and fishes, underwent a sharp change after the discovery of oil in UAE (oil exports begun from Abu Dhabi in 1962).

With the emergence of UAE as a nation in 1971, the bilateral trade started growing gradually over the years. The last decade has witnessed transformational change in the overall relations with the UAE, including economic and commerce relationship.

As India and UAE strengthened their cooperation, culminating into a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership in 2017, the trade relations also deepened. From US$ 180 million annually in the 1970s, the trade volume increased to US$ 83.65 billion in FY 2023-24.

"Today, the UAE ranks as India's third-largest trading partner and second largest export destination, with exports over US$ 35.62 billion in FY 2023-24. Meanwhile, India ranks as UAE’s second largest trading partner, with export of over US$ 48 billion in FY 2023-24. The trade basket between the two nations is well diversified, encompassing major products like petroleum products, gems and jewelry, food items, textiles, chemicals and engineering goods," the website said.

Investment has also become a significant component of this relationship. The two nations signed the Bilateral Investment Treaty in February 2024 which entered into effect from 31 August 2024. From April 2000 to September 2024, the cumulative FDI from the UAE into India amounted to US$ 22 billion (DPIIT), making UAE the seventh-largest overseas investor in India. UAE’s investments are well-diversified with focus on sectors like real estate, infrastructure, energy, private equity and financial services. UAE’s Sovereign Wealth Funds (SWF) have a strong presence in India. Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA), UAE’s largest SWF has recently established a subsidiary office in GIFT City, Gujarat.