As tensions escalate across West Asia, the Iranian Embassy called the Indians their friend and reassured them of safety in a viral tweet thread on the Strait of Hormuz.
The Strait handles roughly 20% of global oil and a large share of India’s crude imports.
The Strait of Hormuz connects the oil-rich Persian Gulf to the rest of the world. Around one-fifth of global energy supplies normally pass through it. Before the conflict, more than 130 ships crossed daily. Now, only 3–4 ships per day are managing to pass.
The viral tweets
In the viral tweets, the Iranian Embassy in India posted: “ONLY Iran and Oman will decide the future of the Strait of Hormuz. You are in safe hands, no worries.”
They soon added another tweet to their post, saying, “Our Indian friends are in safe hands, no worries.”
Iran has not fully shut the Strait but has effectively imposed a selective blockade. It has restricted access for the US, Israel and their allies, while allowing ships from countries it considers “friendly,” including India, to pass.
Reports suggest Iran may introduce a system requiring ships to seek approval and possibly pay fees to pass through the strait.
Earlier today, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said there is “no dearth of fuel or gas in the country” and that India was ready to deal with any energy crisis arising from the ongoing West Asia conflict.
He said that Indian Navy ships were safely escorting the country’s tankers through the Strait of Hormuz, a key chokepoint for maritime trade and an Iranian territory.
The defence minister credited Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s diplomatic skills for protecting Indian interests in the Gulf region.
“We are closely monitoring the state of affairs in West Asia and are prepared to deal with any situation,” he said, adding that India will do anything to help its citizens living in the region.
On Wednesday, Modi called for an ‘all-out effort’ to safeguard the Indian citizens from the impact of the war in West Asia and stressed a timely and authentic public information system to ward off any misinformation or rumour-mongering.
Crude jumps to $110 a barrel
US President Donald Trump used a prime-time address to pledge more aggressive action against Iran over the next two to three weeks and offered no concrete plans to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.
This dropped S&P 500 futures 1.2% after the benchmark hit a one-week high in the previous session. European and Asian stocks also fell. Oil prices, which posted a record 60% jump in March, resumed their surge on Thursday, nearing $110.
Optimism had been building in the run-up to Trump’s speech after the president had earlier said he foresaw the US ending the war with Iran within two to three weeks, before changing his stance today.
OPEC ministers to meet on Sunday
OPEC ministers will meet on Sunday, but the scale of disruptions they have faced and the resulting output cuts by Gulf countries mean they have little room for manoeuvre.
The eight members – Saudi Arabia, Russia, Iraq, Oman, Algeria, Kazakhstan, Kuwait and the UAE – had been gradually raising output before the conflict erupted a month ago.
The International Energy Agency estimates the war has already removed about 12 million barrels per day of oil production, about 12% of global consumption.
Saudi Arabia and the UAE have rerouted some flows to ports away from the Strait of Hormuz, but Iraq and Kuwait are struggling with export constraints.
(With agency inputs)
