India assures UAE investors ‘legacy issues’ will be addressed

Dubai: Indian finance minister Arun Jaitley on Monday said he plans to meet a number of UAE investors to resolve the “legacy issues” affecting the flow of investments into the world’s fastest growing economy.

“I’ll be meeting a large number of investors from the UAE and there are a large number of legacy issues. And it is going to be our effort within the framework of negotiations to try and see that many of them are solved expeditiously so we are able to have a much easier and free flow of investments,” Jaitley said.

Previous “legacy” issues regarding foreign investment into India from the UAE include etisalat lossing it mobile licence in India’s 2G scandal in 2011 and a property dispute involving Emaar in 2013.

Jaitley was speaking at the inaugural UAE India Economic Forum, which was attended by Mohammad Ahmad Bin Abdul Aziz Al Shehhi, Undersecretary — UAE Ministry of Economy along with 200 other delegates.

Jaitley sought more foreign investments in infrastructure sectors like railways, ports and highways. His visit comes after a historic trip last August by India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi to the UAE, which was followed by UAE Foreign Minister Shaikh Abdullah Bin Zayed Al Nahyan’s visit to New Delhi in early September.

“I’m certain that this mutual partnership has to be taken to a new level after our governments met three months ago,” said Jaitley, adding “it’s a relationship that would flourish.”

Talking about the UAE and Dubai, Jaitley praised the emergence of Dubai and the UAE as a global hub. “I’ve been a witness to the build-up of this region almost brick and brick. In many areas, you have been successful in shifting the global hub to this part of the world. You picked up an area which was geographically the most challenging ones and used some of the most entrepreneurial techniques and vision to develop what this great vision really is,” he said.