Iran welcomes Indian initiative to end war, says Iranian minister

NEw new delhi: persia testament receive any native american initiative to end the war in West Asia and ensure security and stability, though one BRICS member state is holding up consensus within the grouping in finalising a joint declaration, Iranian deputy foreign minister Kazem Gharibabadi said on Wednesday ahead of a key meeting of the bloc.Gharibabadi, a member of the Iranian team conducting negotiations with the US, spoke with a small group of journalists hours before Iranian Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi arrived in New Delhi to participate in a meeting of BRICS foreign ministers to be held during May 14–15. Araghchi will also hold bilateral meetings with External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov.With nearly a dozen Indian-flagged ships still located to the west of the Strait of Hormuz, which has been effectively closed by Iran since the start of the West Asia conflict on February 28, Gharibabadi said Tehran is finalising protocols and arrangements for “fees” that will have to be paid by every vessel using the waterway. He insisted that this is not a toll, and said the charges will be based on services provided by the coastal states of Iran and Oman.While Iran is fully prepared for either negotiations with the US that lead to the “termination of war” or the resumption of hostilities, Gharibabadi said his country will welcome any initiative by the “great nation of India” that brings peace, security and stability to the region. India and other developing countries, he said, should “do their best to prevent the resumption of war”.“For Iran and the rest of the world, insecurity, instability and war will have negative consequences,” he said. Dismissing the impression that this is a war between Iran, Israel and the US, he said this conflict has “global consequences and effects”. He added, “It’s the responsibility of developing [and] independent countries like India, which look toward peace, stability and security, [to help end the war].”Gharibabadi, who met Secretary (West) Sibi George of the External Affairs Ministry on Wednesday, said he had requested the Indian side to come up with an initiative to end the West Asia conflict. “India is a big [and] important country, if India comes with an initiative, we will welcome that,” he said.Gharibabadi said a BRICS member state was holding up consensus in finalising a joint declaration for the grouping’s summit to be held in September by insisting on the inclusion of text condemning Iran. Though he did not directly name the country, it was apparent he was referring to the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Differences between Iran and the UAE have held up joint statements in recent BRICS meetings.“We are in favour of having the final declaration because first, this is happening during the presidency of India and we want to have a successful meeting. Second, it's not good to signal to the world that BRICS has been divided,” Gharibabadi said. Asked if he was referring to the UAE, he replied that only one of Iran’s neighbours is a member of BRICS and hoped this country will show flexibility in finalising the joint declaration.The UAE joined BRICS when the grouping was expanded in 2024. While Saudi Arabia too was invited to join, it has not yet taken on full membership of the bloc.“There is one neighbouring country of Iran that is insisting [on condemning] Iran in the final declaration,” Gharibabadi said. “We have not attacked our neighbouring countries… We have targeted military bases of the US in neighbouring countries.”Iran has documented thousands of attacks by fighter jets and missiles of the US launched from the territories of its neighbours, he said. He said it is unacceptable for Iran to be condemned in the joint declaration without any condemnation of the actions of Israel and the US.Responding to a question from HT about media reports of the UAE and Saudi Arabia carrying out attacks on Iran, Gharibabadi said: “Yes, that’s true.”Iran has documented direct attacks from two neighbouring countries and has also criticised and warned them, he said. “We have sent the documents to them that they have been engaged directly [in attacks]... This new piece of information that has been released in the Western media, we had it before,” he added.Gharibabadi made it clear that all vessels using the Strait of Hormuz will henceforth have to pay a fee or charge for navigation and rescue services provided by Iran and Oman. “Iran and Oman, as the two coastal states, are providing some services… We haven't charged vessels in past decades, but now we have come to the conclusion that it's time to charge the vessels,” he said.“It's not a toll. We are not a member of the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea of 1982, so we do not have any international obligation,” he said, adding that the protocol and arrangements being finalised will be non-discriminatory, in accordance with international law and transparent.