Second India–Arab Foreign Ministers’ Meeting

India hosted 22 members of the League of Arab States (LAS) for the second India–Arab Foreign Ministers’ Meeting in New Delhi, marking a significant diplomatic engagement a decade after the inaugural meeting held in Bahrain. This was the first time India hosted the meeting in New Delhi.

The meeting took place against a backdrop of heightened geopolitical tensions in West Asia, including escalating strains between Iran and the United States, a widening rift between Saudi Arabia and the UAE, and renewed efforts by the Donald Trump-led US ‘Board of Peace’ to introduce a new approach to resolving the Israel–Palestine conflict.

The meeting concluded with the adoption of the Delhi Declaration, which reiterated support for the Arab Peace Initiative of 2002. The initiative is based on a land-for-peace framework, under which Arab states would recognise Israel in return for Israeli recognition of a sovereign Palestinian state based on pre-1967 borders. While the Declaration also endorsed the outcomes of the 2025 Sharm el-Sheikh Summit—the only instance referencing a US role—the emphasis on the Arab Peace Initiative was seen as reflecting the core preferences of both India and the Arab League.

Economic and energy ties featured prominently in the engagement. India–Arab trade exceeds $240 billion, with bilateral hydrocarbon trade crossing $107 billion, accounting for nearly half of total trade. India sources over 95% of its LPG, 60% of LNG, and 47% of crude oil from Arab League countries, along with more than 50% of fertilisers and related products. Strategically, a majority of India’s external trade passes through key maritime routes including the Suez Canal, the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, underlining the region’s critical importance for India’s trade and energy security.

The League of Arab States, headquartered in Cairo, Egypt, is an intergovernmental organisation comprising 22 Arab countries across the Middle East and North Africa. It was established on March 22, 1945, following the adoption of the Alexandria Protocol in 1944, and serves as a key platform for political, economic and cultural coordination among Arab states.