India would like to establish transport links between Iran's Chabahar Port and Armenia, as it sees in it another direction of communication between India, the Caucasus and Europe, which will be beneficial to all. Sripriya Ranganathan, Secretary for Consular, Passport, Visa and Overseas Indian Affairs in the Ministry of External Affairs of India, stated this at the Yerevan Dialogue 2026 international forum Wednesday in the Armenian capital.

She noted that more and more countries are beginning to realize the need for alternatives, including in terms of opportunities for transporting goods to consumers.

Ranganathan said that the crisis in the Middle East has had a huge impact on Iran due to its close economic ties with partners in the Persian Gulf countries. India’s trade with these countries exceeds $200 billion. India has significant investment ties with those countries. India gets a significant portion of its oil and gas from those countries. India buys fertilizers as well from there. No less important is the fact that India has a community of 10 million in the Gulf countries, whose well-being and security are of paramount importance to India, she added.

Now India is striving to achieve freedom of navigation for all its ships through the Strait of Hormuz, and hopes that this will enable India to quickly restore normalcy. To cope with the current situation, India had to significantly review its strategy. It has managed to diversify its sources of supply. Today, India buys oil and gas from 41 suppliers, which is a significant step in its procurement strategy. This has given India some flexibility. This is still not enough, but the situation has improved, concluded the Indian MFA official.