External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar has clarified that India has not reached any ‘blanket arrangement’ with Iran regarding the India-flagged vessels that recently passed through the Strait of Hormuz amid escalating conflict in the Middle East.
The Minister, in an interview with the Financial Timessaid that ‘every ship movement is an individual happening’. He also denied that Iran had received anything from India in exchange for allowing the vessels to pass through the chokepoint.
“It’s not an exchange issue,” Jaishankar said.
“India and Iran have a relationship. And this is a conflict that we regard as something very unfortunate.”
Jaishankar hailed direct talks with Iran as the most effective way to restart shipping through the Strait of Hormuz amid tensions in the Middle East and said the talks have yielded some results.
“I am at the moment engaged in talking to them, and my talking has yielded some results,” Jaishankar told the Financial Times in an interview published on 15 March.
What diplomacy could bring
Jaishankar told the FT that negotiations between New Delhi and Tehran, which allowed for two Indian-flagged gas tankers to pass through the Strait on Saturday, were an example of what diplomacy could bring.
Jaishankar was referring to the recent transit of two Indian-flagged liquefied petroleum gas carriers through the Strait as an example of progress through diplomatic engagement.
The vessels, Shivalik and Nanda Devi, were carrying around 92,712 metric tonnes of LPG and are headed to India. They are expected to arrive at the ports of Mundra and Kandla, according to reports.
“Certainly, from India’s perspective, it is better that we reason and we co-ordinate and we get a solution than we don’t,” he added. “So if that sort of allows other people to engage, I think the world is better off for it.”
Jaishankar said the talks have been ongoing since there are more Indian ships at the Strait.
“These are still early days. We have many more ships there. So while this is a welcome development, there is continuing conversation because there is continued work on that,” he added.
Jaishankar has held conversations on the phone four times with his Iranian counterpart, Abbas Araghchiin the wake of Iran closing the crucial Strait of Hormuz, hampering shipments of oil and fuel to several countries.
“Had another conversation with Iranian FM@araghchi yesterday night. Discussed bilateral matters as also BRICS related issues,” Jaishankar Posted on X on Friday, after the fourth conversation between the two leaders.
West Asia Crisis
The ongoing conflict in West Asia began on 28 February after the US and Israel launched joint strikes on Iran, which also killed Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei
In response, Iran launched retaliatory strikes on US-Israel military bases in its neighboring nations.
Certainly, from India’s perspective, it is better that we reason and we coordinate and we get a solution than we don’t.
Iran has vowed to block the region’s oil exports, saying it would not allow “even a single litre” to be shipped to its enemies. The snarls have sent oil prices above $100 per barrel and threatened a surge of painful inflation across the global economy if the blockage persists.
The International Energy Agency on Thursday said that the fighting has caused the largest supply disruption in the history of the global oil market.
