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Firstly, it is home to a large Indian expatriate population, which constantly nurtures and renews the ties of friendship and understanding between the two countries.

Secondly, India and Qatar enjoy close and friendly relations at the political level and share common views and perceptions on matters of bilateral, regional and international interest.

Thirdly, from the economic standpoint, there is a growing synergy between India and Qatar in the hydrocarbon and other sectors. Indeed, the two countries are natural economic partners, with their strengths and potentialities complementing each other. Qatar has made significant progress in the development of its natural gas reserves in the North Dome Field. India is a large and expanding market for export of LNG from Qatar and the geographical proximity of the two countries virtually ensures mutually beneficial interaction in a long-term perspective. In addition, there are enormous opportunities for expanding bilateral trade and other economic linkages, considering the geographical proximity and historical ties between the peoples of both the countries.

The historical and traditional association between India and Qatar is very old. Long before India's independence, Bombay (now Mumbai) was a premier sorting and marketing centre for pearls from the Gulf and until the late 1960s, Indian currency and postage stamps were current in Qatar. Over the years, there has been considerable people-to-people contact and cultural interchange between the two countries.

As a result of these historical links, the people of India and Qatar are well acquainted with each other. Indeed, one could go further and say that there is much in common between the Indian and Arab cultures. This provides a solid foundation for the strong and diversified relationship that has evolved today.

In the more recent past, a number of steps have been taken to further strengthen and expand the bilateral relations. These include exchanges of high level visits, cooperation in multilateral institutions, political consultations on bilateral, regional and international issues of mutual interest and consideration of a number of bilateral Agreements to strengthen the legal and institutional basis of our cooperation.

India is now looking forward to the proposed visit to India of HH Sheikh Hamad Bin Khalifa Al-Thani, Amir of the State of Qatar. This will be a landmark event which will effect a qualitative change as well as a quantitative increase in the level of the bilateral relationship. A number of important Agreements are expected to be signed during the visit.

India and Qatar have already signed Agreements on Cultural and Technical Cooperation (1980), Economic and Technical Cooperation (1984) and Organisation of Manpower Employment (1985). Several other bilateral Agreements are under various stages of discussion. These include Agreements on bilateral investment protection, double taxation avoidance, civil aviation, Foreign Ministry consultations, youth and sports cooperation, cooperation in combating terrorism, drug traffic and organised crime, and in combating illicit traffic in narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances. Hopefully, a number of these Agreements will be finalised at the earliest and signed during the forthcoming visit of H.H. the Amir to India.

Both sides wish to give a strong economic impetus to their bilateral relations. India is the tenth biggest source for Qatar's imports and the third biggest market for Qatar's exports. The total trade volume between India and Qatar was QR 775.39 million ($213 million) during 1996, as per the latest statistics released by the Qatari Central Statistics Organisation. India's exports to Qatar were QR 219 million ($60 million) while its imports from Qatar were of the order of QR 556 million ($153 million) during 1996.

India's direct exports to Qatar have increased steadily, from US$ 39 million in 1992 to US$ 54 million in 1993 and US$ 63 million in 1994 and US$65.1 million during 1995. The exports stood at US$ 60 million in 1996. In addition, there is substantial entrepot trade to Qatar via Dubai. Taking this into account, it is estimated that India's exports to Qatar would be upwards of US$ 100 million annually. A number of consumer goods from India are available and popular in Qatar and there are good prospects for diversification and expansion given the low level of customs duties in Qatar.

India's export basket is fairly diversified and includes foodstuffs, spices, tea, coffee, textiles, ready-made garments, jewellery, light engineering goods, basic chemicals, steel pipes, and consumer electronics. This acceptance of a wide variety of Indian goods in the competitive and highly quality conscious market of Qatar gives us confidence that there is considerable room for expanding our exports further.

India's imports from Qatar have also increased steadily, from US$ 56 million in 1992 to US$ 82 million in 1993, US$140 million in 1994, US$142.36 in 1995 and US$ 152 million in 1996.

India's imports from Qatar consist of largely of urea, ammonia, sulphur, ethylene and polyethylene. India has substantial dealings with the Qatar Fertiliser Company (QAFCO) and the Qatar Petrochemical Company (QAPCO). The Government of India have recently taken a decision to include, in principle, purchase of crude from Qatar in the annual purchase plan for 1998-99. A trial shipment has recently been sent to India for testing to determine its suitability for use in Indian refineries.