India warned to rethink Iran and Russia trade ties

US ENVOY NIKKI HALEY THREATENS SANCTIONS

THE US ambassador to the UN, Nikki Ha­ley, last Thursday (28) urged India to re­consider its ties to Iran, one of its key en­ergy suppliers, as fresh US sanctions on buyers of Iranian oil loom.

Washington has stepped up pressure on major Iranian customers to stop importing its oil, warning that no trading partner will be exempt from new economic sanctions when they bite from November 4.

India imports the overwhelming majority of its oil, and Iran is the third-largest sup­plier to the nation of 1.25 billion.

Haley said she understood India “can’t change its relationship with Iran in a day”, but said she used a meeting with prime minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi to encourage a reassessment.

“I also think for the future of India, and the future of being able to get resources and who they are dependent on, I would en­courage them to rethink their relationship with Iran,” she told the media in New Delhi.

“I think as a friend, India should also de­cide, is this a country they want to continue doing business with?”

US president Donald Trump withdrew his country from the Iran nuclear deal last month, re-imposing sanctions that had been suspended in return for curbs on Teh­ran’s nuclear programme.

US officials said Washington would be asking major Iranian customers to reduce their oil imports to zero, and warned no ex­emptions would be made when the sanc­tions were enforced.

Before the 2015 nuclear deal between Iran and six major powers, various buyers of Iranian oil, including India, had waivers or exemptions to US sanctions.

India’s foreign ministry said last Thurs­day, however, that the Islamic republic was a “very traditional partner” that enjoyed “historical, civilisational linkages” to India.

“She has her views, and our views on Iran are very clear,” ministry spokesman Raveesh Kumar said of Haley, whose two-day visit to India also included visits to holy sites in the Indian capital.

“We will take all necessary steps, includ­ing engagement with relevant stakeholders to ensure our energy security.”

Haley’s visit coincided with revelations that a long-anticipated meeting between US and Indian defence and foreign minis­ters, known as a 2+2, had been delayed for a second time.

She played down rumours of a rift, saying the meeting would be rescheduled “very soon” and was “an important sign of how much our security and defence cooperation has grown in recent years”.

Washington has put new emphasis on its military ties to New Delhi and its regional role as a counter to China’s rise.

But it could still fall foul of US sanctions imposed last August threatening sanctions on any country doing business with Russia’s defence and intelligence sectors.

India, the world’s top defence importer, had been in talks with Russia to buy missile systems when the sanctions were announced and New Delhi has said the embargo would not affect ties to Moscow.

Haley said last Thursday that “anybody, any country, that does business with Rus­sia... there are sanctions”. (AFP)