Modi, Trump Discuss Keeping Strait of Hormuz Open Amid West Asia Conflict

US Ambassador to India Sergio Gor informed of the development saying the two leaders discussed the ongoing situation in the Middle East, including the importance of keeping the Strait of Hormuz open.

The ongoing conflict in West Asia has entered its fourth week, disrupting trade routes through the Strait of Hormuz.

Earlier, US President Donald Trump said the Strait of Hormuz, a vital global shipping route, will be "open very soon" amid the conflict in West Asia and suggested that he envisions it being managed jointly by the US and Iran.

Trump said that the strait will be "open very soon" if ongoing negotiations with Tehran continue successfully.

He added that he and the newly appointed Supreme Leader of Iran, Mojtaba Khamenei, will "jointly" control the critical shipping and global energy route.

"It'll be jointly controlled. Me and the Ayatollah, whoever the Ayatollah is, whoever the next Ayatollah is," the US President added.

The Strait of Hormuz is a critical transit route that normally handles 15 million barrels per day of crude oil and 5 million barrels per day of oil products, representing roughly 25 per cent of global seaborne oil trade. However, due to the conflict in the region, the waterway has been considered high-risk for transit, choking the global energy supply.

The US President also revealed that the US is currently in negotiations with a "top person" within the Iranian regime to conclude the war. However, he clarified that these high-level discussions do not involve the new Supreme Leader, Mojtaba Khamenei.

Meanwhile, PM Modi told Parliament that he had been in regular contact with several Gulf Countries and the US and had advocated a solution through dialogue.

"Since the start of the war, I have held two rounds of phone conversations with the heads of state of most countries in West Asia. We are in continuous contact with all the Gulf countries, and we are also in touch with Iran, Israel, and the United States," PM Modi said.

"Through diplomacy, India is trying to ensure safe commutation of the country's ships even in a war situation. India has opted for a solution through dialogue to resolve this issue," PM Modi added.

The Prime Minister said that it was India's priority to ensure safety of the large Indian diaspora in the Gulf.

"Around one crore Indians live and work in the Gulf countries, and ensuring the safety of their lives and livelihoods is also a major concern for India. Many ships from around the world are stranded in the Strait of Hormuz, and many Indian crew members are on board them, which is also a major concern for India. In such a difficult situation, it is necessary that from this Upper House of India's Parliament, a united voice for peace and dialogue should go out to the entire world," he said.

At an interministerial briefing, Rajesh Sinha, Special Secretary, Ministry of Shipping clarified that there was no permission being sought to cross the Strait of Hormuz.

"No permission is required (to cross the Strait of Hormuz). As I said, it is an international Strait. Permission was not required before. It is not required even today. You definitely assess the situation as to how the safety will be, how one should move, at what time one should move, but still, it is not that permission is required from anyone," he said.

As you would know, this is an international Strait, and as per international convention, it has the right of freedom of navigation and no levy fee can be imposed on it as per international regulation. Therefore, any fact presented by anyone, any argument made by anyone has no basis. It is baseless. This is a baseless argument," he added.

With the conflict in West Asia in its fourth week, there seem to be signs of a possible settlement with the US announcing its negotiation efforts.

- ANI