Indian Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar said on Thursday that unimpeded maritime flows through international waters, including the Strait of Hormuz, are vital for global economic well-being.
India's Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar welcomes Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi during the BRICS foreign ministers' meeting at Bharat Mandapam in New Delhi, India May 14, 2026. Reuters/Adnan Abidi
Indian Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar said on Thursday that unimpeded maritime flows through international waters, including the Strait of Hormuz, are vital for global economic well-being.
Jaishankar was speaking at the start of a two-day meeting of BRICS foreign ministers in New Delhi.
"The conflict in West Asia merits particular attention," Jaishankar said, referring to the U.S.-Israeli war in Iran.
"Safe and unimpeded maritime flows through international waterways, including the Strait of Hormuz and the Red Sea, remain vital for global economic well-being."
The impact of the war in Iran, including the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz, has been described as one of the biggest disruptions to energy markets in history.
The disruption has choked tanker traffic and sent energy prices surging, stoking fears of spiralling inflation and a global economic downturn.
The BRICS grouping, founded by Brazil, Russia, India and China, expanded to include South Africa in 2011. Egypt, Ethiopia, Indonesia, Iran and the United Arab Emirates have joined more recently. India holds the BRICS chair for 2026.
Foreign ministers from most member states are attending the meeting in New Delhi, including Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi and the UAE’s Deputy Foreign Minister Khalifa Shaheen Al Marar.
The war has made it harder for the group to reach consensus on a joint statement, reflecting differences between Iran and the UAE, which are on opposing sides in the conflict launched on February 28.
Jaishankar also said BRICS must address the "increasing resort to unilateral coercive measures and sanctions inconsistent with international law and the U.N. Charter."
"Such measures disproportionately affect developing countries. These unjustifiable measures cannot substitute dialogue, nor can pressure replace diplomacy."
He said emerging economies expect BRICS to play a constructive and stabilising role.
Reporting by Aftab Ahmed and Saurabh Sharma
The United States' response to Iran's seven conditions in a proposal to reopen the strategic Strait of Hormuz was "insufficient", Iran's security chief, Mohsen Rezaei, was quoted by state media on Sunday as saying.
Yemen's Houthis warned airlines, travellers and airport workers on Sunday to stay away from Saudi airports, a day after an attack on Riyadh's international airport killed 12 people and wounded more than 300 others.
At least 12 people were killed and more than 300 wounded in an attack on Riyadh's international airport on Saturday, the deadliest in the kingdom in more than a decade, as the Iran-backed Houthis escalate a campaign they launched this summer.
To make this website run properly and to improve your experience, we use cookies. For more detailed information, please check our Cookie Policy.
Necessary cookies enable core functionality. The website cannot function properly without these cookies, and can only be disabled by changing your browser preferences.