United Nations: India has condemned the attacks on commercial shipping in the two important arteries of global trade — the Strait of Hormuz and the Bab al-Mandab Strait — and called for upholding international maritime law to ensure safe passage on the seas.
“The targeting of commercial shipping and civilian infrastructure in the region must end,” India’s Permanent Representative P. Harish told the Security Council on Tuesday (local time)
“Free and unimpeded navigation and commerce through the international waterways in the region, in keeping with international law, must be restored at the earliest,” he said at a debate on the situation in the Middle East.
Harish called attention to the recent attacks on three ships with Indian crews, GFS Galaxy, MT Al Bahiyah and MT Mombasa in the Strait of Hormuz.
“Several Indian citizens were injured, including some seriously; one Indian tragically lost his life, and one is missing, in these attacks,” Harish said.
“India has consistently condemned acts of violence targeting seafarers and disrupting free and safe navigation through international waterways like the Strait of Hormuz,” he said.
He did not name Iran, which attacked the three ships near the Oman coast, but he mentioned the Houthis while condemning the attack on shipping in the Bab al-Mandab Strait.
Houthis, an Iran-aligned rebel group in Yemen, have claimed to have attacked four Saudi-connected ships in that strait leading to the Red Sea, and eventually the Suez Canal.
“The protection of the Bab al-Mandab Strait and the Southern Red Sea is a shared international responsibility and is a global interest,” Harish said.
“India reaffirms its unwavering commitment to the unity, sovereignty, and territorial integrity of the Republic of Yemen and rejection of any interference in its internal affairs,” he added.
The US has also attacked shipping in the Strait of Hormuz, killing three Indian sailors on the Palau-flagged MT Settebello, as it blockaded Iranian ports.
Harish stressed the importance of the Gulf region to India, calling for “a return to dialogue and diplomacy in the interests of peace, security and stability in the region”.
“Our stakes in the security and stability of the region are high,” he said.
“India’s trade and energy supply chains are strongly linked to this region. With bilateral annual trade of around $180 billion, cumulative Foreign Direct Investment of over $31 billion, and remittances of more than $52 billion from GCC (the six-country Gulf Cooperation Council) alone,” he said.
“These linkages have direct implications for our economy and energy security,” he said.
The safety and well-being of the 10 million Indians in the Gulf “are a key priority for us,” he added.
(IANS)
