Iran in India says ‘will sacrifice all to win against US’; India underlines dialogue with Tehran

Dr Abdul Majid Hakeem Ilahi, the representative of Iran’s Supreme Leader in India, on Friday said that Tehran will sacrifice everything for its dignity and land to defeat the United States in the ongoing war.

The Iranian Supreme Leader’s representative in India asserted that Iran didn’t start the war and was engaged in negotiations with the United States when it was attacked by the US and the “Zionist regime”.

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“Iran did not initiate this war. Iran was engaged in negotiations with the United States and was also pursuing diplomatic efforts…Suddenly, the United States, along with the Zionist regime, attacked Iran, and they targeted a lot of civilians in Iran,” he said.

Ilahi further declared, “We will win in this war, and we are prepared to sacrifice everything we possess for the sake of our dignity and our land.”

He further stated that Tehran has not closed the Strait of Hormuz, a key shipping route in the Gulf, adding that some ships are still sailing through.

“Iran has not closed the Strait. It remains open; however, due to current conditions and circumstances, ships are unable to pass through the Hormuz. Otherwise, Iran never wanted the Strait to be closed or blocked. Some (ships) are still passing through,” said.

India calls for dialogue and diplomacy to end the conflict

Meanwhile, India has called for dialogue and diplomacy to resolve the conflict as soon as possible. Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday spoke with Iranian President Dr Masoud Pezeshkian and expressed concerns over the security situation in the region, while also conveying India’s position.

During the phone call, the first since the war broke out on February 28, PM Modi also highlighted the issue of the safety and well-being of Indian citizens in Iran.

“Yesterday our Prime Minister spoke with the President of Iran, Dr Masoud Pezeshkian. During his conversation, the Prime Minister highlighted our priorities regarding the safety and well-being of Indian citizens. He also mentioned the importance of the transit of energy and materials. The Prime Minister expressed deep concern over the security situation in that region and also expressed our position, India’s stand, that people should move forward through dialogue and diplomacy so that this issue, the conflict there, can be resolved as soon as possible,” MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said on Friday.

He also stated that the External Affairs Minister (EAM) S Jaishankar also discussed issues of India’s concerns with his Iranian counterpart Abbas Araghchi yesterday.

“The External Affairs Minister spoke with the Foreign Minister of Iran, Abbas Araghchi, and the two Foreign Ministers discussed bilateral issues as well as BRICS issues…From Iran, we have had in the last few days, including today, 170 Indian nationals have crossed through the land border into Armenia. Several of them have come back to India, and others will be coming back to India over the next few days, taking commercial flight options that are available from Armenia to India,” Jaiswal added.