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SUMMARY: I2U2 Leaders’ Summit

The leaders of India, Israel, the UAE, and the US identified six major areas of cooperation: water, energy, transport, space, health, and food security.

July 15, 2022

Author

Statecraft Staff
SUMMARY: I2U2 Leaders’ Summit 
A joint statement said the I2U2 will tackle the “greatest challenges” of the global community through joint investment and cooperation.
IMAGE SOURCE: YOUTUBE

On Thursday, Israel, United Arab Emirates (UAE), and the United States (US) participated in the first meeting of the I2U2 group, also being referred to as the “New Quad” or the “West Asian Quad.” The heads of the governments of the four countries—Indian Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi, Israeli PM Yair Lapid, UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, and US President Joe Biden—virtually participated in the discussions.

Here are the key takeaways from the meeting:

Joint Statement

The leaders adopted a joint statement that highlighted how the grouping taps into the “entrepreneurial spirit” of the four countries to launch joint investments and initiatives in water, energy, transportation, space, health and food security.

In particular, the statement underscored the importance of private sector investment to “modernize infrastructure, advance low carbon development pathways for our industries, [and] improve public health and access to vaccines” with a wider goal of ensuring food and energy security. 

Furthermore, the quartet reiterated their support for the Abraham Accords, under which a number of Arab countries normalised ties with Israel. The statement said that the deal has paved the way for new economic opportunities as well as new groupings, such as the Negev Forum, which brings together the US, Bahrain, Egypt, Israel, Morocco, and the UAE.

The crux of the statement, however, focused on food security and clean energy.

The leaders thus announced initiatives to “ensure long-term, more diversified food production and food delivery systems that can better manage global food shocks.” For instance, it was revealed that the UAE will invest $2 billion and set up a “series of integrated food parks across India” using climate-smart technology that will “reduce food waste and spoilage, conserve fresh water, and employ renewable energy sources.”

Israel and US will provide expertise and facilitate innovative solutions to promote sustainability. India, meanwhile, will ensure the integration of local farmers as and also the provision of sufficient land.

On clean energy, the group decided to set up a hybrid renewable energy project in Gujarat with a capacity of 300 megawatts of wind and solar capacity. The US Trade and Development Agency will invest $330 million for a feasibility study, while Emirati companies will provide expertise and serve as investment partners.

Israel and the US aim to strengthen private sector opportunities in the UAE and India to help India reach its goal of achieving 500 gigawatts of non-fossil fuel capacity by 2030. To this end, the statement said, “Such projects have the potential to make India a global hub for alternate supply chains in the renewable energy sector.”

The leaders also celebrated India’s decision to join US, UAE, and Israel in the Agriculture Innovation Mission for Climate Initiative.

In conclusion, the leaders said that they sought to “leverage well-established markets to build more innovative, inclusive, and science-based solutions to enhance food security and sustainable food systems.” Keeping this in mind, they highlighted the importance of improving the movement of people and goods and increasing “sustainability and resilience through collaborative science and technology partnerships.”

Individual Address by Indian PM Narendra Modi

PM Modi began his opening statement by celebrating the “cooperative model” of the summit, which he said brought together “strategic partners” with a “common perspective and common interests.”

In this regard, he welcomed the grouping’s “positive agenda” as well as its “progressive and practical” vision to launch joint projects in water, energy, transport, space, health, and food security.

He said the I2U2 would mobilise “the mutual strengths of the countries – capital, expertise, and markets” and “contribute significantly” to the global economy, energy security, food security, and economic growth amid a period of “increasing global uncertainties.”

Individual Address by Israeli PM Yair Lapid

PM Lapid stressed that the formation of the new grouping is a reflection of the fact that conducting business in the same way as before the pandemic is destined to “fail.” He thus hailed the countries for adapting to “a new world with new challenges,” noting that “challenges are local, but solutions are global.”

Lapid opined that one of these solutions is food security, which he said has been exacerbated by the Ukraine war as well as the COVID-19 pandemic and caused untold damage in Africa, Latin America, East Asia, and the Middle East.

To this end, he welcomed the establishment of a food corridor between India and UAE as well as the wind and solar energy storage project. 

The newly-appointed Israeli PM stressed that the I2U2 is not a “philanthropic group,” but rather one that seeks to “create relative advantages” for one another’s countries and businesses.

In this regard, Lapid acknowledged that the four countries are “very different” but want the same things—economic and environmental security, quality education and improved health and transportation infrastructure. Furthermore, he said the format of the grouping was the “correct model,” noting that some groups are “too big” and end up becoming “ineffective.”

Individual Address by UAE President Bin Zayed Al Nahyan

The Emirati leader celebrated the meeting for providing a “great opportunity for cooperation between countries and economies” that are united by their common values and goals “centred around peace, tolerance, and prosperity.” He said that while the I2U2 countries do not share a geographical border, they are brought together by their shared desire for “peace, tolerance, and prosperity” and their opposition to “overlapping challenges” such as “blind extremism.”

In this regard, he said it was important for the leaders to focus on developing climate-smart agriculture. He noted that while their current discussion centred around food and energy security, future meetings should also include talks about healthcare and space.

Individual Address by US President Joe Biden

In his opening statement, Biden stressed on the need for the global community to find “new ways of working together” to counter new challenges, such as the climate crisis, food insecurity, and volatile energy markets, all of which have been exacerbated by Russia’s “brutal and unprovoked” attack on Ukraine and the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Biden thus stressed the importance of a “comprehensive response” and a “common agenda,” and said the normalisation of ties between Israel and Arab states would enhance their ability to tackle “common challenges.”

The US president projected that the UAE’s investment in ‘agricultural parks’ in India could “sustainably increase” the South Asian country’s food yield in just five years. He noted that the US has also launched a feasibility study on a renewable energy project in India,

Biden opined that this meeting was just the “first step” in addressing the “infrastructural vacuum” around the globe. 

Author

Statecraft Staff

Editorial Team

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