US President Donald Trump has said Washington will keep the Strait of Hormuz effectively shut as leverage against Iran, signalling that the vital oil route will reopen only when a deal is reached.
Washington moves to end temporary oil transaction relief and targets Iran-linked networks, signalling a sharper economic push as tensions in West Asia continue to impact global energy flows.
Iran’s deputy foreign minister defended Tehran’s role in Gulf security and warned of retaliation against attacks, while stressing that diplomacy remains the only viable path to resolve the conflict.
Surjewala highlighted public statements by US officials, including Marco Rubio, who said India had committed to stop buying Russian oil as part of broader discussions tied to the trade framework. Rubio’s remarks came at the Munich Security Conference, where he said Washington had “gotten their commitment to stop buying additional Russian oil” following talks with Indian officials.
Following the withdrawal of the US waiver, India has stopped contracting oil shipments from Iran.
The remarks by Iran's Ambassador to India come a week after US Secretary of State Michael Pompeo hailed India for cutting off oil imports from Iran.
At the press briefing, Modi and Trump agreed that they would meet at an early date to try and sort out issues pertaining to trade between the two countries.
Mike Pompeo will travel to India, Sri Lanka, Japan and South Korea from June 24 to 30 and the visit is aimed at deepening US partnerships in the strategic Indo-Pacific region.
The meeting gains significance as the Trump administration recently told India, China, Turkey and a few other oil customers of Iran that no waiver on sanctions would be granted to them after 1 May.
The US had told India and other countries to cut oil imports from the Gulf nation to 'zero' by November 4 or face sanctions.
