India joins UK talks on opening Strait of Hormuz; MEA ‘reaches out to Iran’ to ensure safe passage

New Delhi: India is involved in talks hosted by the UK to open the Strait of Hormuz, the Ministry of External Affairs confirmed on Thursday.Foreign Secretary Misri represented India at the meeting on the situation in West Asia convened by the British Foreign Secretary. More than 60 countries participated in the meeting,” MEA said in a statement.

In his speech at the meeting, the Foreign Secretary noted the importance of the principle of freedom of navigation and unimpeded transit of international waterways. He highlighted the impact of the crisis on India’s energy security and the fact that India remains the only country to have lost crew members in attacks on merchant ships in the Gulf. He also stressed that the way out of the crisis includes de-escalating the situation and returning to the path of diplomacy and dialogue between the parties involved,” the statement further added.Meanwhile, spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal maintained his emphasis on navigation safety during the weekly MEA briefing, saying: “We are in contact with Iran and other countries to see how best to allow unimpeded and safe transit of our ships carrying LPG, LNG and other products. Through conversations over the past few days, we have had six Indian ships able to safely transit the Strait of Hormuz and we will continue to be in touch with all parties involved.”“Prime Minister Keir Starmer announced earlier this week that the UK would host a meeting of around 35 countries later this week to discuss reopening the strategic Strait of Hormuz.He told a Downing Street press conference that the meeting would “evaluate all feasible diplomatic and political measures we can take to restore freedom of navigation, keep trapped ships and seafarers safe, and resume the movement of vital goods.”He added that British Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper would chair discussions aimed at bringing countries together to promote “maritime security in the Gulf.”