The widely publicised Gujral-Saddam hug cost India dearly. According to former foreign secretary, J.N. Dixit, not just Kuwait but many Arab countries did not forget the incident easily. Indeed when he return to government in the late 1990s, none of the Gulf countries invited Gujral.

New Delhi’s traditional focus on Palestinians in dealing with the Middle Eastern countries did not work with Kuwait. During the occupation the Palestinian leadership, especially Yasser Arafat, sided with Saddam Hussein. This dented the Palestinian-Kuwaiti relations beyond repair. Indeed, despite repeated American pressures, Kuwait refused to host Arafat until his death in Novemer in 2004.

India’s policy towards the Middle East since the Kuwait war underwent significant changes. It has gradually moved away from Iraq, forged closer ties with Iran and sought to minimise the role of Pakistan in cultivating countries such as Saudi Arabia. With its accelerating economic growth, much of India’s policy toward the Gulf countries has been focussed on energy needs. Qatar and Oman have emerged principal players in India’s long-term energy plans.

But normalisation of relations with Kuwait remained a slow and painful process. Since the visit of then foreign minister, Madavsinh Solanki, in February 1992, India has been trying to mend fences with the Gulf sheikhdom. Even though media reports then were not very favorable, as Prime Minister Narasimha Rao’s envoy he opened the door for a dialogue. The effort has been bi-partisan when leader of opposition, Atal Behari Vajpayee, visited Kuwait in October 1997 and numerous officials exchanged visits.

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