NEW DELHI: India formally condoled the death of Iran’s supreme leader Ayotallah Ali Khamenei on Thursday. External affairs minister Jaishankar spoke to Iranian counterpart Seyed Abbas Araghchi, while Foreign secretary Vikram Misri visited the Iran Embassy in India and signed the condolence book on behalf of the government.“Had a telecon with Iranian FM Seyed Abbas Araghchi this afternoon,” said Jaishankar on X.Meanwhile, visuals emerged of Misri talking to the Iran envoy and signing the condolence book.This marks the first formal reaction from India on the supreme leader’s death, who was killed on February 28, in a joint US-Israel strike on Tehran.
Meanwhile, ever since tensions escalated in the Middle East, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has made various calls to leaders in the region. On Tuesday, he spoke to the Sultan of Oman and the Crown Prince of Kuwait, expressing concern over recent attacks and reviewing the security of the Indian community in the two Gulf nations. PM held the phone conversation with Sultan Haitham bin Tarik of Oman. He also spoke with Kuwait’s Crown Prince Sheikh Sabah Al-Khaled Al-Hamad Al-Mubarak Al-Sabah. During both discussions, the Prime Minister conveyed India’s concern at the attacks in the respective countries and discussed the welfare and security of Indians residing there.Later, Prime Minister also spoke to Amir of Qatar, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani. He condemned the attacks on Qatar and thanked Qatari leadership for support and care of the Indian community in Qatar.In the few days, Prime Minister Modi has spoken to leaders of: UAE, Israel, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Bahrain, Oman, Kuwait, Qatar. The outreach is part of India’s continued diplomatic engagement with its Gulf partners amid the recent regional escalation and the widening confrontation between US-Israel and Iran. With a large Indian diaspora residing and working across the Gulf, New Delhi has been closely monitoring developments and staying in touch with regional leadership to safeguard their interests and security.
