New Delhi
5 July 2010
In her most comprehensive remarks yet about how India views its relationship
with Iran, Foreign secretary Nirupama Rao has said India's ties with the Persian Gulf
nation are a "fundamental" component of its Look West policy.
"Our approach to Iran is embedded within the rationale that defines our foreign policy -
our developmental priorities, our independent national interest, our commitment to multi-
polarity over uni-polarity, our consciousness of the inequities in the global order today,"
Ms Rao said, dispelling the ambiguity that had crept into the India-Iran ties.
She was addressing the delegates participating in the strategic dialogue on "India and
Iran: An enduring relationship", organised here Monday by the Institute for Defence
Studies and Analyses, New Delhi and the Institute for Political and International Studies,
Tehran.
The foreign secretary said New Delhi was revisiting its relationship with Tehran with a
strategic perspective in mind, independent of how countries such as the US choose to
pursue their ties with Iran.
Her remarks came ahead of the meeting of the bilateral Joint Commission, headed by
External affairs minister SM Krishna and the Iranian minister for economic affairs and
finance, Shamseddin Hosseini, to be held here on July 8 and 9.
Ms Rao recalled "an instinctive feeling of goodwill" the Indians had towards the Iranian
people, and identified four areas of complementarities and convergences between the
two countries: regional stability, in particular Afghanistan; economic relationship;
maritime security; and energy security.
"I would today reiterate the need for structured, systematic and regular consultations
with Iran on the situation in Afghanistan," she noted.
"We need to move beyond mere articulation of positions as the Afghan conundrum
deepens and could have a deleterious impact on our two countries and the region in
case the forces of extremism and obscurantism are made arbiters of the fate of the
Afghan people. Our cooperation and information sharing on counter-terrorism must be the
subject of more intensive focus and attention in the future."
The secretary welcomed the Iranian government and private sector to fully realise the
potential of the Chabahar port project and the international north-south corridor project,
which also includes Russia and the Central Asian Republics in addition to India and Iran.
She spoke about the need for jointly making accelerated efforts on the Chabahar port
project, which according to her should be seen not only as commercial but also as
strategic in nature, not just for India, but also for all the countries in the region.
Linking the Iranian port to the Zaranj-Delaram highway built with Indian assistance in
Afghanistan will help India transport its goods, including humanitarian supplies, to
Afghanistan, Central Asia and beyond.
Referring to the India-Pakistan-Iran gas pipeline project, Ms Rao said India has
repeatedly made clear the fact that accessing energy resources from all parts of the
world is absolutely critical to the continued growth of its economy and Iran has the
potential to play an important role in this regard.
"I would argue that the India-Iran relationship will become even more important with the
inevitable rise of both India and Iran in this century, which has been dubbed by many as
the Asian century," she noted, maintaining that the India-Iran relationship was good for
the region and for the world as a whole.
// Box //
India differs on unilateral US sanctions on Iran
India on Monday voiced its concerns about the unilateral sanctions imposed by
the United States on Iran.
"We are justifiably concerned that the extra-territorial nature of certain unilateral
sanctions recently imposed by individual countries, with their restrictions on investment
by third countries in Iran's energy sector, can have a direct and adverse impact on
Indian companies and more importantly, on our energy security and our attempts to meet
the development needs of our people," Foreign secretary Nirupama Rao said here.
After the United Nations, the US has imposed a new set of stiff sanctions on Iran. Last
week, US President Barack Obama signed a bill which aims to cut off Iran's access to
refined petroleum imports, including gasoline and jet fuel and bans US banks from doing
business with foreign banks that provide services to Iran's Revolutionary Guards.
Ms Rao said the IAEA continues to provide the best framework for addressing technical
issues related to the Iranian nuclear programme.
"We support the right of all states to undertake peaceful uses of nuclear energy
consistent with their international obligations. We have conveyed to our interlocutors
that all concerned should adopt a flexible approach to achieve a comprehensive solution
to all issues. India has always supported dialogue and avoidance of confrontation," she
noted.
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