Nitin Pai: India must urgently build a coalition to contain the conflict in West Asia

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories.New Delhi must act urgently to gather a coalition of like-minded and like-affected countries to conduct diplomacy with the warring parties in West Asia. The goal is not so much to get them to stop fighting but to prevent their war from throwing the Indian and world economy into a severe crisis. US President Donald Trump’s announcement that the US will blockade the Strait of Hormuz for ships headed for or leaving Iran’s ports threatens to impose pain and suffering on hundreds of millions of innocents.

In the wars that followed the Hamas attack on Israel in October 2023, New Delhi has studiously remained silent despite its nationals suffering injuries and death from Israeli military operations in Gaza and Lebanon. The same posture continued when Iran targeted other Gulf countries, hurting our nationals. The Indian government did not object after US Navy submarines sank an Iranian ship in what India’s maritime doctrine calls our primary area of interest.

While New Delhi’s refusal to protest has been criticized by many commentators, the government’s position can be understood—even if it is debatable—on the grounds that such rhetoric will not change things but merely sour our relations with the US, Israel and Arab states of the Gulf.India can no longer afford a posture of silent forbearance. We are heavily reliant on oil and gas supplies from the Gulf region. The closure of Hormuz is an acute threat to our economy (and a Bab-el-Mandeb clamp would worsen it).

Over 60% of our energy comes from that region. The surge in oil prices is an acute fiscal risk, throwing our current account out of kilter and eating into our foreign exchange reserves. The US has now threatened to stop all ships with