Saudi Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan arrived in Kuwait on Thursday for the Gulf Cooperation Council ministerial meeting.
The meeting will finalize the agenda for the Supreme Council’s 45th session, scheduled for Sunday in Kuwait City.
Leaders from across the Gulf are expected to attend the session.
Kuwait’s Foreign Minister Abdullah Al-Yahya personally welcomed Faisal bin Farhan upon his arrival.
India and France have immense potential for partnerships in renewable energy, said Commerce & Industry Minister Piyush Goyal on Wednesday. He highlighted the success of the International Solar Alliance (ISA), co-led by the two countries, calling it a “runaway success.” Speaking at the Asia Pacific Commission (APAC) 2024 Forum organized by the French Foreign Trade Advisors, Goyal noted that over 100 countries have joined the ISA.
Goyal elaborated on the alliance’s mission to bring clean and renewable energy to emerging and less-developed nations. He emphasized that sustainable practices could help mitigate climate change and its global impacts.
The minister also pointed out opportunities in agricultural and food processing sectors. “India and France can collectively expand agricultural and food processing for the world’s food security using innovative sustainable practices,” he stated.
India’s partnership with France has grown into a strong framework, covering areas like space exploration, defense, civil nuclear energy, digitalization, and a shared Indo-Pacific vision. Goyal mentioned the adoption of the Horizon 2047 roadmap, which outlines a 25-year shared vision for cooperation.
He invited French collaboration in India’s infrastructure projects, including industrial cities across 20 locations, to create world-class connectivity and urban ecosystems.
On the aerospace sector, Goyal noted that India is the world’s largest aviation market, with 1,500 planes ordered and potential for up to 2,000. He urged French aviation companies to establish manufacturing facilities in India. “For the next three decades, the Indian aviation market will be the largest demand aggregator,” he said. He also highlighted India’s rapid airport expansion, growing from 74 airports in 2014 to 125 today, with plans for 75 more by 2029.
Goyal stressed India’s growing defense sector, inviting global companies, including French firms, to manufacture in India. He assured that India’s robust patent regime does not insist on technology transfer and offers 100% ownership for foreign companies.
Discussing automobiles and electric vehicles (EVs), he said India and France could co-develop technologies for a sustainable mobility revolution. “India has a large pool of first-time vehicle owners, and providing them sustainable options will be easier,” Goyal added.
On digital technology, he encouraged both nations to support startups in cybersecurity, AI, e-commerce, and quantum technologies. He announced that the India-France Year of Innovation 2026 would boost technology-driven growth through joint projects in IT, healthcare, renewable energy, and smart cities.
“The true strength of the India-France partnership lies in trust,” Goyal said. He emphasized that mutual trust would enhance investments in manufacturing and services. Highlighting the role of Global Capability Centres (GCCs) in India, he said both countries could co-innovate and foster academic partnerships to improve the innovation landscape.
Indian High Commissioner to the UK, Vikram Doraiswami, said the Keir Starmer government is ready to restart Free Trade Agreement (FTA) negotiations with India. He described the FTA as an “ongoing process” and noted that the UK completed its internal review in July.
After meeting Prime Minister Narendra Modi during the G20 Summit in Brazil, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer announced that FTA talks between the UK and India would relaunch in 2025.
Speaking to ANI, Doraiswami said, “The FTA is an ongoing process. The government that came to power here in the UK in July completed their internal review and is now ready to restart negotiations. We welcome that. Let’s not prejudice what happens in the negotiations because the negotiations have to restart. Let’s see what happens beyond that.”
He highlighted the growing bilateral trade between the two nations and expressed optimism about the negotiations. “The movement of goods and services between us continues to grow and our investments continue to be significant in each other’s economies,” he added.
On November 22, Richard Heald, Chair of the UK-India Business Council (UKIBC), spoke about the transformative potential of the FTA for businesses and trade. He emphasized its role in simplifying processes between the two countries.
“If you look at those companies who are not here (India), then the FTA will make a difference. It (FTA) will make it easier and more comforting to come here to India and to get embedded,” Heald stated.
Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba urged U.S. President Joe Biden to approve Nippon Steel’s $15 billion acquisition of U.S. Steel, highlighting the deal’s importance to bilateral relations, according to sources familiar with the matter.
Biden expressed his opinion against the purchase, stating possible threats to national security, along with a major effect on U.S. labor organizations. The Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States has been asked to review the deal and provide a recommendation before President-elect Trump takes office on January 20.
Government agency CFIUS, responsible for evaluating foreign investments for security concerns, might accept the agreement. However, there would be restrictions and the assessment process might get prolonged. If none of this happens, it might suggest a rejection. The panel had already raised concerns about the vulnerability of the steel supply chain resulting from the proposed deal.
Emphasizing the geopolitical and financial advantages of the purchase, Ishiba addressed in a letter dated November 20 the reflection of Japan’s position as the biggest foreign investor in the United States. He noted that enhancing the economic cooperation fits the “unprecedented strength” of the Japan-U.S. relationship under Biden’s leadership. Nippon Steel has promised to invest in modern technologies and safeguard employment in line with American concerns. In the letter, Ishiba said, “The proposed acquisition will enable Japanese and U.S. steel companies to combine advanced technologies and increase competitiveness and will contribute to enhancing steel production capacity and employment in the United States.
Italy and Japan have strengthened their defence sector collaboration by signing a bilateral deal in Rome, the Italian government announced on Monday. Italian Defence Minister Guido Crosetto and Japanese Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya formalised the agreement, named the Acquisition and Cross-Service Agreement (ACSA).
The agreement streamlines acquisitions, supplies, and exchanges in military operations and ensures rapid mobilization of aid during emergencies and natural disasters. Both nations also collaborate with Britain on the Global Combat Air Programme (GCAP), a project to develop an advanced front-line fighter jet set to enter service by the mid-2030s.
Italy emphasized that the GCAP program demonstrates how nations with shared values can unite to address contemporary global challenges. Later on Monday, Foreign Minister Iwaya will join a G7 Foreign Ministers meeting in Italy.
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and the Maldives Monetary Authority (MMA) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to establish a framework promoting the use of local currencies – Indian Rupee (INR) and Maldivian Rufiyaa (MVR) – for cross-border transactions. This initiative seeks to streamline trade between the two nations by allowing exporters and importers to invoice and settle transactions in their respective domestic currencies.
The framework is expected to encourage the development of trading in the INR-MVR pair in the foreign exchange market. By adopting local currencies, both countries aim to reduce transaction costs, minimize reliance on third-party currencies, and cut down settlement times, the RBI said in an official statement. This move aligns with broader efforts to enhance regional economic integration and reduce external financial dependencies.
RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das and MMA Governor Ahmed Munawar signed the MoU, which marks a significant step toward strengthening bilateral trade ties and fostering economic cooperation. With this agreement, India and the Maldives are poised to deepen their economic partnership while facilitating smoother financial transactions, promoting efficiency, and supporting the growth of trade relationships between the two nations.
The Govt. of Australia on Thursday introduced a bill in the parliament that aims to ban social media for children under 16 and introduced a fine of A$49.5 million for social media platforms for systematic breach of the rule. They also planned a trial on an age-verification system that may include biometrics or government identity verification to enforce social media age cut-off. This is one of the toughest moves made by any country till date.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese addressed this as a landmark reform. This comes after the Albanese-led Labor government has crossed swords on excessive use of social media which has a serious impact on children’s physical and mental health especially for girls who can be exposed to harmful depiction of body image and nudity, and male supremacist content for boys.
Many countries have already vowed to curb the usage of social media by children through legislation and government policies but Australia’s policy makers have been very strict towards it.
Though there are some softwares like messaging, online gaming, and health and education related services, such as youth mental health support platform Headspace, google classroom and youtube which are still available for the underages. Albanese informed in his statement. This move is also supported by the opposition Liberal Party.
The law would force social media platforms, and not parents or young people, to take reasonable steps to ensure the age-verification protections are in place.
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer will be traveling to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Saudi Arabia next month as per the plan briefed by a source on Wednesday. With such a move, Britain seeks to deepen the ties between the wealthy Gulf states.
Another source briefed Starmer’s UAE travel plans and confirmed his visit to UAE. However, both sources are anonymous about the plan as the travel plan hasn’t been announced officially.
As per the sources, Britain hopes to get investment from the Gulf countries, including UAE’s energy projects.
In the meeting, Starmer would also discuss conflicts between Israel, Gaza and Lebanon and other regional issues. This visit would be Starmer’s first one since his party won the British general election held in July. The government has promised to build relations with the UAE, which was affected severely by the previous Conservative government.
The Prime Minister’s visit was first reported on Wednesday by the Financial Times, and then other familiar people cited his plans later on. It was also reported by the newspaper that a visit to London by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman might take place next year, but his travel plans had not yet been finalized.
The leaders of Britain, Japan, and Italy have discussed the GCAP jet fighter project on a broader scale with other countries, as stated by the office of Giorgia Melong, the Italian Prime Minister, on Tuesday.
In December 2022, Japan, Britain, and Italy agreed on collaborating for an advanced front-line fighter to enter the middle of the next-decade service.
The meeting was held between Meloni, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and Shigeru Isiba, the Prime Minister of Japan, on Tuesday on the sidelines of the G20 summit taking place in Rio de Janeiro.
As per the official statement, “They agreed on the importance of the project continuing to move forward expeditiously, reaffirming their common intent to further strengthen the ongoing collaboration.”
India and Australia clinched an ambitious renewable energy partnership and set their eyes on a comprehensive economic cooperation agreement as Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Australian counterpart Anthony Albanese vowed to ramp up overall bilateral ties significantly. The two leaders welcomed the partnership, which aims to boost bilateral investment in renewable energy sectors, on Tuesday at the annual G20 summit held in Rio de Janeiro.
Albanese said in a meeting that Australia and India would also look to enhance defense and maritime security cooperation. He also said that this partnership will include a rooftop solar workforce as India seeks to boost household use of renewables. Australia is the largest producer of per capita rooftop solar.
In his speech Prime Minister Modi said that they were exploring new cooperation on defence industry, critical minerals, renewable energy, ship building, space, according to the transcript.
Australia has rich copper, vanadium, cobalt, and lithium deposits used in electric vehicle batteries. The partnership is a significant milestone in India-Australia cooperation and will guide our climate and energy cooperation. Australia is committed to working with India to seize the economic opportunities of the net zero transition. Our new renewable energy partnership will translate this aspiration into reality.
