A major book on Indo-Saudi relations written by a top-notch journalist-author Ghazanfar Ali Khan will hit the stands early next year. The book, the first of its kind to delve into history and contemplate the future of Indo-Saudi relations amidst the fast-changing geopolitical landscape, claims to bring to light, for the first time, all aspects of the relationship between the two countries. Saudi Arabia is home to over 2.6 million Indian workers today.
Khan, who has worked for about 27 years in mainstream Saudi media besides serving for seven years as Bureau Chief of Arab News, the largest English daily of Saudi Arabia, has in his book focussed on bilateral relations in sectors like politics, defense, economy, manpower, and culture. “In his career as journalist, Khan has written and published about 25,000 reports, news stories, and features in different publications, including 5000 stories about Indo-Saudi relations,” said a profile of the book released recently.
Khan, who has had the distinction of participating in several global media conferences in about 35 countries, talks in his book about the various phases of cooperation between the two powers and focuses on the changes that have occurred in different periods. The book examines the nature and character of strategic issues that have led the two countries towards being called ‘natural allies’ and ‘strategic allies’ with contemporary issues, such as strategic ties and energy security, dominating bilateral relations.
The book also analyses the nature and extent of economic relations and defense cooperation. “The work is a thorough analysis of past and present events that have shaped, and are shaping relations between the two countries and a look at what the future may hold,” said the profile. Because of their historical roles and significance in contemporary international politics, Saudi Arabia and India have perpetually been in the crosshairs of policy circles and interested observers in almost every other part of the world.
“Crucial interactions touching upon any aspect of Riyadh-New Delhi ties, from diplomatic and military links to economic and cultural connections, have especially been in the limelight in the book,” said the profile while giving the author's biographical details. Khan arrived in Saudi Arabia in 1993 from a tiny village of eastern Indian state of Bihar. Today, he is a high-profile journalist in the Middle East besides his roles as media consultant and social activist.
He has written and published about 25,000 reports, news stories, and features in different publications and news agencies, including 'Arab News', ‘Associated Press’, ‘The Diplomat’ (A journal published by the Saudi Ministry of Foreign Affairs), ‘Ahlan Wasahlan’ (Inflight Magazine of Saudi Arabian Airlines), ‘The Hindustan Times’, a daily newspaper published from India; and ‘The Nation and the World’, besides a few other media outlets.
Khan, who has been conferred with several awards and commendations, has reported widely on politics, development, security, entertainment, aviation, and humanitarian issues from Saudi Arabia, India, the UK, Italy, Greece, Belgium, the Netherlands, Nepal, Bahrain, Switzerland, Sweden, Indonesia, South Korea, Singapore, Thailand, the UAE, China, Malaysia, and more recently from Germany.
Khan has attended several conferences and dialogues globally, responding to invitations from UN agencies, international organizations, and several nations. To this end, it is important to note that Khan was awarded “Saudi Arabia's the Best Reporter Award (Arab News) in 1995 and European Union Familiarization Certificate in 2009. He was also a jury member for several journalism awards, including the Samir Foundation Award in Lebanon a few years back.
He was a panelist at an important session of the Global Inter-Media Dialogue held in Bali (Indonesia) in 2006, an active participant at a media summit in South Korea in 1995, and a Global Forum for Media Development held in Athens (Greece) in 2008. He has regularly participated in the Global Media Forum in Bonn (Germany) since 2018.
The author is an independent corporate PR professional associated with News & Events Management Alliance (NEMA), Bengaluru. He can be contacted on nema.overseas@gmail.com. The views expressed are his personal.