India sits precariously in this US-Israel-led war against its old regional partner Iran. This, says Sonia Sarkar, is because of Hindu supremacist Prime Minister Narendra Modi\u2019s\u00a0proximity to Israel’s leader Benjamin Netanyahu\u00a0<\/p>\n
Military aggression is escalating in the Middle East. Israeli and US\u202fair strikes<\/a> have killed Iran\u2019s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. To de-escalate tensions, India urged all parties to exercise restraint. Modi advocated the pursuit of ‘dialogue and diplomacy’ and\u00a0advised all states to\u00a0prioritise ‘sovereignty and territorial integrity’.\u00a0<\/p>\n India is the only<\/a> founding BRICS member that has not formally condemned the attacks on Iran. It co-sponsored UN resolution<\/a> that condemned \u2018egregious attacks\u2019 by\u00a0Iran against Gulf Cooperation Council countries, instead.<\/p>\n Balancing Israel and Iran\u00a0<\/p>\n Coincidentally, the US-Israel air strikes began soon after Modi had concluded a whistlestop visit to Israel. Enjoying great bonhomie with Israeli\u00a0Prime\u00a0Minister Netanyahu, Modi signed a\u202fraft of\u00a0MoUs<\/a>, in artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, defence and agriculture. At the Knesset, Modi pledged that\u202fIndia stands<\/a>\u202f’firmly, with full conviction’ alongside Israel. For his ‘loyalty’, Modi was awarded a Speaker of the Knesset Medal, an honour which, allegedly,\u202fhad never existed<\/a>\u202fearlier.\u00a0<\/p>\n In 2017, Modi became the first Indian prime minister to\u202fvisit Israel<\/a>, during a trip allegedly scheduled on\u202fJeffrey Epstein<\/a>‘s advice. That year, India was the\u202flargest buyer<\/a>\u202fof Israeli weapons, purchasing $715m worth, including Pegasus spyware<\/a>\u202ffor\u00a0monitoring\u00a0the devices of opposition politicians, journalists, lawyers, and civil rights activists. More than 80% of what\u202fIndia buys\u202ffrom\u202fIsrael\u202fis advanced technology designed for\u202fsurveillance<\/a>, protection, and\u00a0accurate\u00a0military strikes.\u00a0<\/p>\n While it focused on growing proximity with Israel, India distanced itself from Iran.\u00a0<\/p>\n Iran, however,\u00a0remains\u00a0an important strategic partner for India. Indeed, Iran was one of the first countries to establish diplomatic relations with India<\/a>\u202fafter it became a republic; the two have over 75 years of diplomatic history. Iran serves India\u2019s multifaceted strategic interests<\/a>: engagement\u202fwith West Asia, security dynamics\u202fand\u202fstability in the Persian Gulf, land access to Central Asia and Russia, energy security, and the geopolitics of Afghanistan. And India and Iran share\u202fcivilisational history<\/a>. Between 1950 and 2003, the two signed a\u202ffriendship treaty<\/a>, the\u202fTehran Declaration<\/a>\u202fand the\u202fNew Delhi Declaration<\/a>\u202ffor deepening India-Iran co-operation.\u202f\u00a0<\/p>\n Iran was one of the first countries to establish diplomatic relations with India after it became a republic; the two have over 75 years of diplomatic history<\/p>\n Modi did not visit the Islamic Republic until 2016. The only significant arrangement with the country was a\u202ften-year agreement to develop Chabahar Port in southeastern Iran, an important entrep\u00f4t leading to Afghanistan and Central Asia. By 2025,\u202fIndia had invested $120m\u202fin its development<\/a>. Reports\u00a0indicate\u00a0that recent US-Israel strikes specifically targeted<\/a> Chabahar.\u00a0<\/p>\n India buckles under US pressure\u00a0<\/p>\n Iran once supplied\u00a0nearly 10%\u00a0of India\u2019s crude oil requirements. India, however, reversed<\/a>\u202fthis by voting against Tehran\u2019s nuclear programme at the International Atomic Energy Agency. New Delhi eventually halted oil imports<\/a>\u202ffrom Iran after May 2019, when the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action collapsed and the US reinstated sanctions on Iranian oil exports. US President Donald Trump recently suggested that\u202fIndia will buy oil from Venezuela<\/a>\u202finstead of Iran, and it allowed India\u202fa 30 day-window<\/a> in March to\u00a0purchase\u00a0oil from Russia.\u00a0<\/p>\n Beginning with his visit to the UAE in August 2015, Modi launched a focused\u202foutreach to West Asia<\/a>. His visits boosted political and economic ties with the\u00a0region,\u00a0but Modi made little attempt to build the kind of solid, strategic partnership India enjoys with Israel. India\u2013Iran bilateral trade has\u202fdeclined sharply<\/a>, from about $17 billion in 2018 to\u00a0roughly $1.68 billion\u00a0in 2024\u201325.\u202fIndian investments in Iran\u2019s oil and gas sector, too, have\u00a0largely stalled.\u202f\u00a0<\/p>\n Copying the Israeli\u00a0model\u00a0<\/p>\n India\u2019s ruling\u202fBharatiya Janata Party<\/a> (BJP) and\u00a0its\u00a0Hindu nationalist supporters<\/a> are increasingly engaging with Israel.\u00a0<\/p>\n Israel is a close defence partner and source of critical military technology to India. For Hindu nationalist Modi and his BJP, the country has also become a model state<\/a>\u202ffor strong ethno-nationalist governance and effective counterterrorism.<\/p>\n For Modi and his BJP, Israel has become a model for strong ethno-nationalist governance and effective counterterrorism<\/p>\n Israel\u202fis fragmented, polarised and divided<\/a> by ethnicity,\u00a0religion\u00a0and ideology. India, too, is highly polarised<\/a>. Since Modi’s election, India has been drawing on elements of Israeli security and nationalism models. Critics say this has reinforced majoritarian politics at home. The BJP \u2013 flagbearers of Hindu majoritarian Hindutva<\/a> ideology \u2013 has adopted an aggressively populist<\/a> posture. Supporters repeat anti-Muslim rhetoric<\/a> and diminish<\/a>\u202fthe rights of non-Hindus.\u00a0<\/p>\n Israel has\u202fdemolished<\/a>\u202fthousands of Palestinian homes, hospitals, and places of worship in Gaza, the West Bank, and East Jerusalem, displacing tens of thousands of residents. Similarly, in India, authorities have demolished<\/a> houses and religious sites belonging to Muslims, whom authorities often portray as ‘foreigners’ or the ‘other’. Hindu nationalists\u202fcelebrated<\/a>\u202fIsrael\u2019s attack on Gaza.\u00a0<\/p>\n Like the\u202fIsraelis<\/a>, Hindu nationalists rejoiced<\/a>\u202fat the death of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, much as Indian Shia Muslims mourned it.\u00a0<\/p>\n What should India do?\u00a0<\/p>\n India\u00a0should now move beyond\u202fIsraeli-style\u00a0nationalism<\/a>. Indeed, it has taken cautious steps to engage with Iran.\u00a0On 28 February, India granted safe harbour to the\u00a0Iranian naval ship IRIS Lavan<\/a>\u00a0at Kochi. Its crew has stayed at naval facilities since 4 March. Following the recent air attacks, India\u2019s foreign secretary signed the condolence book at the Iranian Embassy.\u00a0<\/p>\n Ideally, India must secure<\/a> a long-term safe passage for its ships carrying liquefied petroleum gas transiting the Strait of Hormuz. This will help deal with rising energy costs at home.<\/p>\n India and Iran share a\u202fdeep cultural connection<\/a>. Once tensions around Iran ease, the two must therefore engage in meaningful diplomacy.<\/p>\n India and Iran share a\u202fdeep cultural connection. Once tensions around Iran ease, the two must therefore engage in meaningful diplomacy<\/p>\n The UAE has agreed to store some of its oil reserves in India. New Delhi could explore a similar arrangement with Iran. Qatar<\/a>\u202fremains India\u2019s largest natural gas supplier; it also sources substantial volumes from Abu Dhabi. If Iran resumes gas exports, reviving negotiations on the\u00a0Iran-Oman-India pipeline<\/a>\u202fmight significantly strengthen India\u2019s long-term energy security.\u00a0<\/p>\n Naval cooperation with Iran<\/a>\u202fwould also protect vital lanes in the Arabian Sea, securing the safe passage of Indian vessels.\u00a0<\/p>\n After the US withdrawal from Afghanistan in August 2021,\u202fIran expanded engagement with the Taliban<\/a>. India, too, now counts the Taliban as\u202ffriends<\/a>. India and Iran could consider\u202fjoint counterterrorism exercises<\/a>\u202fwith groups\u00a0operating\u00a0from Pakistan, especially those near Iran\u2019s border with Pakistan.\u00a0<\/p>\n