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The monthly magazine, August 2026 · Global Affairs and International Relations › Conflicts and crises › West Asia · Mains

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Global Affairs and International Relations › Conflicts and crises

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West Asia

The conflicts of West Asia and what they mean for India.

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The war in West Asia and the Strait of Hormuz

Prelims and Mains

LeadThe war in West Asia and the Strait of Hormuz: what India has at stakeJune 2026

Why in news

On 17 June 2026 the United States and Iran signed a 14 point memorandum, mediated by Pakistan, that halted almost four months of war and opened a 60 day window to negotiate a settlement, including the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz. The pause did not hold: the ceasefire collapsed on 8 July and the strait was closed again.

Background

The war began on 28 February 2026, when the United States and Israel struck Iran and Iran answered with missiles and drones across the region.
In late March Iran closed the Strait of Hormuz, through which about a fifth of the world's oil and liquefied natural gas passes.
The strait lies between Iran and Oman. It joins the Persian Gulf to the Gulf of Oman and the Arabian Sea, and is the only sea route out of the Gulf.
Iran has signed but not ratified the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, and disputes the right of transit passage through the strait.

India's stakes

Energy: India imports close to nine tenths of its crude oil, and about two fifths of it came through Hormuz before the war, as did about half its liquefied natural gas.
People: about 9 million Indians work in the Gulf, and India is among the largest suppliers of the world's seafarers. Indian sailors were killed on tankers struck off Oman in June and July.
Money: the Gulf states together are the largest regional source of the roughly 130 billion dollars India received in remittances in 2024.
Connectivity: Chabahar port and the North South corridor depend on Iran; the India Middle East Europe corridor depends on calm around Israel. The war stalled both.

India's response

It has kept channels open to every side: Israel, the Gulf monarchies, the United States and Iran. The External Affairs Minister toured four Gulf states in July and spoke to Iran's Foreign Minister three times by early August.
It has asked for freedom of navigation and the safety of seafarers at every forum. It protested to Washington in June, when three Indians died on a tanker struck by an American strike, and summoned Iran's deputy envoy in July, when an Iranian missile killed an Indian sailor.
It spread its oil buying across more suppliers, including Venezuela and Russia. Its standing escort mission in the Gulf of Oman, Operation Sankalp, has run since 2019.

It welcomed the June memorandum without comment on the Pakistani channel through which it came.

The difficulty

A middle power cannot protect its shipping in a chokepoint it does not control, and India has not joined either side's naval coalition.

Pakistan's role as mediator, backed by China, Qatar and Oman, raised its standing in Washington and Tehran while India's ties with it are frozen.
The strategic petroleum reserve covers under ten days of demand.

The way forward

Press for a toll free right of passage as a principle, at the United Nations and through BRICS, rather than leave it to the parties.
Build oil stocks towards the International Energy Agency's norm of ninety days of net imports.
Build a standing plan for evacuation of the Gulf diaspora, on the model of earlier operations.
Support an Oman led arrangement for managing the strait, since Oman holds its southern shore.

Prelims facts

The Strait of Hormuz lies between Iran and Oman's Musandam peninsula.
About a fifth of the world's oil passes through it.
Bab el Mandeb joins the Red Sea to the Gulf of Aden; the Houthis of Yemen threatened it in July.
Iran has signed but not ratified the law of the sea convention.
India's strategic reserves are at Visakhapatnam, Mangaluru and Padur.

Open the lead on its own page

The war began on 28 February 2026, when the United States and Israel struck Iran and Iran answered with missiles and drones across the region.

What changed

31 Aug 2026Briefnewly addedOn 31 August the Prime Minister met Iran's President Masoud Pezeshkian in Bishkek, voiced concern at the escalation and stressed the safety of seafarers and freedom of navigation. DD India, 31 Aug 2026: In meeting with Iran President, PM Modi calls for resolution of West Asia conflict through dialogue and diplomacy (opens in a new tab)

Show history (3 other updates)

26 Sep 2026newly added
- In early September the United States struck Iranian oil tankers, one near Iran's oil export hub of Kharg Island on 5 September, and both sides attacked commercial vessels; on 14 September India condemned the attack on the motor tanker (MT) El Gaia off Oman, from which 13 Indian crew were rescued and one was missing.
- The Houthis of Yemen attacked Saudi Arabia and on 11 September captured Mayun (Perim) island in the Bab el Mandeb strait; India condemned the attacks on Saudi Arabia as a threat to freedom of navigation.
- At the first meeting of a Group of Friends on the safety of shipping and seafarers, in New York on 26 September, India announced an India and Liberia initiative for a consultative framework on maritime safety.
The Hindu, 9 Sep 2026: Explosions in Kharg Island area of Gulf (opens in a new tab) · News On AIR, 9 Sep 2026: India condemns Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia, calls them unacceptable (opens in a new tab) · News On AIR, 11 Sep 2026: Houthi rebels capture Mayun island in Bab el Mandeb strait (opens in a new tab) · News On AIR, 26 Sep 2026: EAM Jaishankar raises concern over repeated attacks on commercial shipping and seafarers (opens in a new tab) · News On AIR, 14 Sep 2026: India condemns attack on commercial vessel MT El Gaia off Oman coast (opens in a new tab)
14 Jul 2026newly added
- On 8 July the United States declared its ceasefire with Iran over, and strikes resumed around the Strait of Hormuz.
- On 14 July an Iranian missile strike on two tankers off Oman killed one Indian sailor and injured six, and India summoned Iran's Deputy Chief of Mission.
- From 5 to 10 July the External Affairs Minister toured Qatar, Bahrain, Kuwait and Oman, which host much of India's Gulf workforce.
The Hindu, 8 Jul 2026: Trump says 'ceasefire is over', after U.S., Iran exchange strikes (opens in a new tab) · The Hindu, 14 Jul 2026: One Indian sailor killed, six wounded as Iranian missiles strike oil tankers (opens in a new tab) · The Hindu, 14 Jul 2026: Government summons Iran envoy after Indian national killed (opens in a new tab) · Embassy of India, Muscat, 5 Jul 2026: Visit of the External Affairs Minister to Qatar, Bahrain, Kuwait and Oman (opens in a new tab)
18 Jun 2026LeadThe war in West Asia and the Strait of Hormuz: what India has at stake