Iran will support any major-power initiative led by India to restore peace in West Asia, Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi said during a visit to New Delhi. Speaking to journalists, he outlined Tehran’s readiness to back New Delhi’s mediation efforts and described a new Iran–Oman proposal to regulate merchant passage through the Strait of Hormuz.
Gharibabadi said divisions within BRICS have hindered a unified response to the regional conflict, pointing to a single member insisting on condemning Iran—an apparent reference to the United Arab Emirates. He praised India’s impartiality as BRICS chair and urged that the grouping avoid appearing split.
The deputy minister reiterated Iran’s position that it has not attacked neighbouring countries and argued that some states allowed their territory to be used by the United States to strike at Iran. He added Tehran would not seek condemnation of those Arab states that permitted foreign bases.
India is hosting a two-day BRICS foreign ministers’ conclave ahead of the grouping’s September summit. Iran’s foreign minister Abbas Araghchi and Russia’s Sergey Lavrov are among attendees, and the meeting is expected to focus heavily on the West Asia crisis and its energy implications. It remains uncertain whether the ministers will reach a consensus statement on the conflict, after sharp differences between Iran and the UAE stalled earlier efforts to find common ground.
Gharibabadi said Tehran welcomes any diplomatic or facilitation role by third parties, including Pakistan, describing Islamabad’s reported mediation efforts with the United States as “facilitation” that Iran would accept. He also reaffirmed Iran’s commitment to the Chabahar port project and said how India proceeds will depend on New Delhi’s calculations amid US sanctions.
On the wider conflict, Gharibabadi, who was part of past Iranian negotiating teams with Washington, claimed the United States has suffered a strategic loss in the war and questioned US seriousness about ending hostilities through diplomacy.
Regarding the Strait of Hormuz, Gharibabadi tied Iran’s willingness to reopen normal transit to a set of conditions: the lifting of what he described as a US blockade on Iranian ports, an end to the war, and the release of Tehran’s frozen assets. He said Iran has allowed several Indian vessels to transit the strait and could grant more ships permission to return home.
Separately, Iran and Oman are developing a service-and-payment framework for merchant shipping through the strait, Gharibabadi said. Under the provisional proposal, the two countries would offer navigational and other services, and charge fees based on cargo volume and ship size. He said the aim is greater transparency and adherence to international norms, adding that the strait would be ‘‘better than before’’ once peace returns.
Gharibabadi warned, however, that reopening the strait now could enable military use against Iran. Global oil and gas markets have already been affected, he noted, following Iran’s near-blockade of the narrow waterway that handles a significant share of world oil and LNG shipments.
The BRICS meeting in New Delhi is being chaired by External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar. BRICS, which began with Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, expanded in 2024 to include Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran and the UAE, with Indonesia joining in 2025. The grouping now brings together several major emerging economies whose discussions will shape regional and energy-related diplomacy in the months ahead.
