Jaishankar raises Red Sea attacks during talks with Iranian foreign minister

Amidst rising tensions in the Red Sea over Iran-backed Houthis attacking merchant vessels, India's foreign minister S Jaishankar met his Iranian counterpart in Tehran on January 15. Both the leaders discussed a range of issues, including the Red Sea crisis, and talked about ways to discuss regional connectivity through Chabahar Port.

Jaishankar said that the Red Sea attacks have a direct bearing on India's energy and economic interest as he underlined that this "fraught situation" is not to the benefit of any party.

"As you are all aware, there have also been recently a perceptible increase in threats to the safety of maritime commercial traffic in this important part of the Indian Ocean. The minister also referred to it," he said in a joint press statement after wide-ranging talks with Iranian counterpart Hossein Amirabdollahian.

We have even seen some attacks in the vicinity of India. This is a matter of grave concern to the international community. Obviously, it also has a direct bearing on India's energy and economic interests. This situation is not to the benefit of any party, and this must be clearly recognised."

His remarks came on a day when a missile fired by Houthis struck a US-owned ship just off the coast of Yemen in the Gulf of Aden. A day earlier, Houthi fired an anti-ship cruise missile toward an American destroyer in the Red Sea, according to reports.

The US and the UK last week launched air strikes targeting the Houthi positions in Yemen.

India has been closely monitoring the unfolding situation in the Red Sea. The Indian Navy has already enhanced deployment of its frontline ships and surveillance aircraft for maritime security operations in view of the maritime environment in the critical sea lanes including the North and Central Arabian Sea.

Jaishankar, who is here as part of the ongoing high-level exchanges between the two sides, also said that both India and Iran are concerned about recent events in West Asia and emphasise the importance of preventing further escalation of violence and hostilities in the region.

He said the "deeply concerning" situation in Gaza was naturally a subject of discussion.

On the issue of Palestine, Jaishankar reiterated India’s long standing support for a two-state solution, where the Palestinian people are able to live freely in an independent country within secure borders.

(With PTI inputs)