India extends support to peace bid, as Pakistan emerges as likely venue for US-Iran talks

New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday conveyed to President Donald Trump New Delhi’s support for the efforts to bring back peace in West Asia, amid reports that India’s arch-rival Pakistan might host the peace talks between Iran and Israel.

Modi received a call from Trump just a day after External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and the United States Secretary of State Marco Rubio spoke to each other over the phone and had a detailed discussion over the conflict in West Asia and its impact on the international economy, in addition to the energy security concerns.

“Received a call from President Trump and had a useful exchange of views on the situation in West Asia. India supports de-escalation and restoration of peace at the earliest,” Modi posted on X after the phone call with the US leader. “Ensuring that the Strait of Hormuz remains open, secure and accessible is essential for the whole world. We agreed to stay in touch regarding efforts towards peace and stability.”

“President Donald Trump just spoke with Prime Minister Modi. They discussed the ongoing situation in the Middle East, including the importance of keeping the Strait of Hormuz open,” Sergio Gor, the US ambassador to India, posted on X.

Trump had a phone call with Pakistan Army chief, Field Marshal Asim Munir, on Sunday. They discussed the possibility of the representatives of Iran and the US meeting in Islamabad and holding talks to end the conflict. Pakistan Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif held talks with President Masoud Pezeshkian of Iran on Monday.

Trump, too, said on Monday that Washington, DC, and Tehran had held “very good and productive conversations regarding a complete and total resolution of our hostilities in the Middle East”.

Sharif on Tuesday posted on X that Islamabad was ready to “facilitate meaningful and conclusive talks” to end the war in West Asia.

Modi had spoken to President Masoud Pezeshkian of Iran on Sunday, for the second time since Israel and the US had launched missile strikes on the Persian Gulf nation on February 28. He had condemned attacks on critical infrastructure in the region, stressing that such attacks had posed threats to stability and disrupted global supply chains.

He had also reiterated the importance of safeguarding freedom of navigation and ensuring that shipping lanes remain open and secure.

Jaishankar had a meeting with Tehran's envoy to New Delhi, Mohammad Fathali, on Tuesday. He had met the envoys of the Gulf Cooperation Council nations in India on Monday.

Iran responded to the attacks launched against it by carrying out aerial offensives on Israel and the US allies in the region, including Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain and the UAE.

Close to half of India’s crude oil imports, nearly 2.5 million barrels per day, as well as a sizable share of its liquefied natural gas and liquefied petroleum gas supplies, are typically transported through the Strait of Hormuz.

The security uncertainty around the narrow shipping lane in the Persian Gulf due to the escalating conflict between Iran, on one side, and Israel and the US, on the other, caused disruption in crude oil supply from Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates and liquefied natural gas from Qatar to India.

Two Indian-flagged LPG carriers, Pine Gas and Jag Vasant, were among the latest ones to have safely crossed the Strait of Hormuz. They were now on their way to the ports of India. Twenty more Indian-flagged ships are now in the Persian Gulf region, with around 540 citizens of India as sailors.