India has hailed its direct talks with Iran as the most effective way to restart shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, after Donald Trump called on countries to send warships to help the US force open the critical waterway for energy markets.
Trump’s call for China, France, the UK and other countries to send “War Ships” to the Strait comes as governments hit by surging energy prices following Tehran’s closure of the waterway weigh up their options, including talks with Iran or military involvement that would risk dragging them into the spiralling ME conflict.
India’s foreign minister S Jaishankar told the FT that negotiations between New Delhi and Tehran which allowed for two Indian-flagged gas tankers to pass through the Strait on Saturday were an example of what diplomacy could bring.