Iranian Foreign Minister Syed Abbas Araqchi stressed the role of BRICS, currently led by India, in playing a constructive role in supporting security and stability in the region, during a phone call with External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, their fourth conversation since the beginning of the Iran-US conflict.
The two foreign ministers spoke by phone on Thursday evening, according to Jaishankar’s social media post. “I had another conversation with Iranian Foreign Minister @araghchi yesterday evening. We discussed bilateral issues as well as issues related to BRICS,” he said, without providing details.
A statement published on the Telegram channel of the Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs quoted Araghchi as emphasizing the need for international and regional forums and organizations to condemn the military aggression against Iran.
“Noting the importance of the role and status of BRICS as a forum for developing multilateral cooperation, [Araghchi] She considered it necessary for this institution to play a constructive role at the current stage to support stability and security in the region and the world.
Araghchi briefed Jaishankar on the latest situation “resulting from the attacks and crimes committed by the United States and Iran.” [Israel] Against Iran and its consequences on the stability and security of the region and the world. He stressed the “firm will” of the Iranian government, people and armed forces to exercise the legitimate right to self-defense.
The statement quoted Jaishankar as expressing India’s readiness to develop bilateral and multilateral cooperation in regional and international forums and stressing the importance of “finding a way to enhance stability and sustainable security in the region as a collective need.”
Iran is one of the newest member countries of the BRICS group, whose summit is expected to be held in India by the third quarter of this year. The BRICS countries have not yet issued any statement on developments in West Asia.
Jaishankar and Araghchi had previously spoken on February 28, March 5 (after an Iranian warship was sunk by a US submarine near Sri Lanka) and March 10. Prime Minister Narendra Modi also spoke with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian on Thursday evening for the first time since the beginning of the conflict, and laid out India’s priorities, including the safety and security of Indian citizens and “unhindered transportation of goods and energy.”
Nearly 9,000 Indians live in Iran, most of them students, while 10 million Indians live in West Asian countries, most of them concentrated in Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. India’s engagement with the Iranian leadership also focused on measures to ensure the safe passage of Indian-flagged commercial shipments, foreign-flagged tankers and bulk carriers transporting oil, gas and other commodities through the Strait of Hormuz, which the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps has effectively closed.
The safety of a large number of Indian seafarers, who constitute nearly 12% of the global maritime workforce, is another priority for the government as recent attacks on merchant ships left three sailors dead, while another was reported missing.
