India–Iran relations
Iran |
India |
---|---|
Diplomatic mission | |
Embassy of Iran, New Delhi | Embassy of India, Tehran |
Envoy | |
Iranian Ambassador to India Ali Chegeni | Indian Ambassador to Iran Gaddam Dharmendra |
India–Iran relations (
From an economic perspective, Iran is the second-largest supplier of
From a geopolitical perspective, despite the two countries having some common strategic interests, India and Iran differ significantly on key foreign policy issues. India has expressed strong opposition to Iran's nuclear program and while both nations continue to oppose the Taliban, India supported the presence of NATO-led forces in Afghanistan, unlike Iran.[7]
According to a World Service Poll conducted by BBC at the end of 2005, 71 percent of Iranians viewed India's influence positively, with 21 percent viewing it negatively—the most favourable rating of India for any country in the world.[8]
History
The
The Indo-Iranian languages, tracing their origins to a common linguistic root within the Indo-European language family, share deep-seated linguistic connections indicative of a shared ancestry. These languages, which comprise two major branches—Indo-Aryan and Iranian—demonstrate a rich tapestry of historical evolution and cultural interchange. Rooted in a common proto-language, Indo-Iranian languages have diverged over millennia, giving rise to distinct linguistic traditions while retaining traces of their shared heritage. This linguistic continuum serves as a testament to the enduring bonds between the peoples of the Indian subcontinent and the Iranian plateau, transcending geographical boundaries and fostering a sense of interconnectedness across millennia.
During the Middle Ages, there was fusion of medieval Persian culture in India, especially since the Delhi Sultanate till the period of Mughal Hindustan. In modern age, after the Partition of India in 1947, the newly independent India was no longer a neighboring country to the State of Iran, although the relations between both the nations still remained healthy.
The
The rise of the Ghurid dynasty and the subsequent establishment of the Delhi Sultanate further solidified the connections between India and Iran. Led by Muhammad of Ghor, the Ghurids brought Persian culture and administrative practices to northern India, laying the groundwork for centuries of Islamic rule. This period witnessed a convergence of Indian and Persian influences in various spheres, including language, architecture, and governance. The Ghurid expansion also facilitated diplomatic interactions and trade networks between the two regions, promoting cultural exchange and mutual understanding.[10]
The Iranian lineage of Hamida Banu Begum, mother of the Mughal Emperor Akbar, serves as a testament to the familial and cultural ties between India and Iran during the Mughal era. Akbar's upbringing, influenced by his Iranian heritage, contributed to his efforts to promote religious tolerance and cultural syncretism in the Mughal Empire. This cosmopolitan outlook facilitated diplomatic engagements and cultural exchanges between the Mughals and Safavid Iran, fostering a sense of shared heritage and identity.[11]
Nader Shah's invasion of India in 1739, while marked by conflict and plunder, had enduring implications for India-Iran relations. The sack of Delhi by Persian forces underscored the geopolitical dynamics of the time and revealed Iran's aspirations in the Indian subcontinent. While resulting in short-term disruptions, this event prompted discussions on mutual security and collaboration between India and Iran in subsequent years, highlighting the need for greater engagement between the two regions to counter external threats and safeguard their respective interests.[12]
The
Current relations
India and Iran have friendly relations in many areas, despite India not welcoming the 1979 Revolution. There are significant trade ties, particularly in crude oil imports into India and diesel exports to Iran. Iran frequently objected to Pakistan's attempts to draft anti-India resolutions at international organisations such as the
In the 1990s, India and Iran supported the
In 2010, Iran's
In August 2013, while carrying oil in the Persian Gulf, Iran detained India's largest ocean liner Shipping Corporation (SCI)'s vessel MT Desh Shanti carrying crude oil from Iraq.[19] Iran was resolute, and insisted the detention of the tanker was "a technical and non-political issue".[20]
On 22 May 2016, Prime minister Narendra Modi paid an official visit to Iran.[21] The visit focused on bilateral connectivity and infrastructure, an energy partnership, and trade.[22]
Just before Prime Minister
Economic relations
Iran's trade with India exceeded US$13 billion in 2007, an 80% increase in trade volume within a year.[citation needed] Via third party countries such as UAE this figure reaches $30 billion.[25]
Oil and gas
In 2008–09, Iranian oil accounted for nearly 16.5% of India's crude oil imports.[
Renewed increase in oil imports
While overall, India's total volume of imported crude has only been rising slightly from 3.2 million b/d in 2009–10 to 3.44 million b/d in 2012–13, imports from Iran have basically been fluctuating around 250,000 b/d from 2012 to 2013 and thus rising proportionally due to a halt for Iranian exports to Europe.[36] The recent detainment of an Indian tanker by Iranian officials is unrelated to the oil embargo,[19] but in an effort to save over US$8.5 billion in hard currency, and realising a 180-day waiver from US sanctions, India plans to increase Iranian imports by 11 million tons for 2014, in addition to the two million tons of crude oil shipped from Iran by June 2013, up 21.1% from last year.[citation needed]
On 18 March 2022, Iran's ambassador to India was quoted as stating that the country is ready to meet India's energy security demands, as talks between world powers and Tehran for the removal of sanctions against the OPEC member continue.[37]
Iran's Nuclear Interests
India, despite close relations and convergence of interests with Iran, voted against Iran in the International Atomic Energy Agency in 2005, which took Iran by surprise. A "welcoming prospect" Ali Larijani was reported as saying: "India was our friend".[38] Stephen Rademaker also acknowledged that India's votes against Iran at the International Atomic Energy Agency were "coerced":[39]
"The best illustration of this is the two votes India cast against Iran at the IAEA. I am the first person to admit that the votes were coerced."
The USA considers support from India – which is on 35-member board of Governors at the International Atomic Energy Agency – crucial in getting a sizeable majority for its proposal to refer the matter to the
Infrastructure
A highway between Zaranj and Delaram (Zaranj-Delaram Highway) is being built with financial support from India.[41] The Chabahar port has also been jointly financed by Iran and India. India alone plans to invest 20 Billion US dollars towards development of Chabahar port.[42] India is helping develop the Chabahar Port, which will give it access to the oil and gas resources in Iran and the Central Asian states. By so doing, India hopes to compete with the Chinese, who are building Gwadar Port, in Pakistan's Balochistan. Iran plans to use Chabahar for trans-shipment to Afghanistan and Central Asia, while keeping the port of Bandar Abbas as a major hub mainly for trade with Russia and Europe. India, Iran and Afghanistan have signed an agreement to give Indian goods, heading for Central Asia and Afghanistan, preferential treatment and tariff reductions at Chabahar.
Work on the Chabahar-Milak-Zaranj-Delaram route from Iran to Afghanistan is in progress. Iran is, with Indian aid, upgrading the Chabahar-Milak road and constructing a bridge on the route to Zaranj. India's BRO is laying the 213 km Zaranj-Delaram road. It is a part of India's US$750 million aid package to Afghanistan. The Chabahar port project is Iran's chance to end its US-sponsored economic isolation and benefit from the resurgent Indian economy. Along with Bandar Abbas, Chabahar is the Iranian entrepot on the north–south corridor. A strategic partnership between India, Iran and Russia is intended to establish a multi-modal transport link connecting Mumbai with St Petersburg, providing Europe and the former Soviet republics of Central Asia access to Asia and vice versa.
North-South Transport Corridor
The North–South Transport Corridor is the
Education
There are about 8,000 Iranian students studying in India. India provides 67 scholarships every year to Iranian students under ITEC, ICCR, Colombo Plan and IOR-ARC schemes. Every year around 40,000 Iranians visit India for various purposes.[47]
Kendriya Vidyalaya Tehran, the Embassy of India School, serves Indian citizens living in Tehran.
Religion
The world's largest population of
See also
- Foreign Relations of Iran
- Foreign relations of India
- Iran-Pakistan-India gas pipeline
- Ibn Sina Academy of Medieval Medicine and Sciences
- Indo-Persian culture
- Buddhism in Iran
- Hinduism in Iran
- Zoroastrianism in India
- Irani
References
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- ISBN 9780313381942.
- ^ a b Zeb, Rizwan (12 February 2003). "The emerging Indo-Iranian strategic alliance and Pakistan". CACI Analyst. Retrieved 21 August 2013.
- ^ "Iran's major oil customers, energy partners". tehrantimes.com. 7 June 2009. Retrieved 13 July 2017.
- ^ Solomon, Jay; Sircar, Subhadip (29 December 2010). "India Joins U.S. Effort to Stifle Iran Trade". Wall Street Journal magazine. Retrieved 1 January 2011.
- ^ "India paid $5 bn Iran oil debt in full: central bank, AFP, 4 September 2011". google.com. Retrieved 13 July 2017.
- ^ "India's Iran calculus". Foreign Policy magazine. Archived from the original on 25 December 2018. Retrieved 1 January 2011.
- ^ BBC World Service Poll Archived 18 January 2007 at the Wayback Machine GlobeScan
- ^ Ralph Pinder-Wilson (2001) Ghaznavid and Ghūrid Minarets, Iran, 39:1, 155-186, DOI: 10.1080/05786967.2001.11834389
- ISBN 978-0-19-565114-0.
The dynamics of north Indian politics changed dramatically, however, when the Ghurids, a dynasty of Tajik (eastern Iranian), origina arrived from central Afghanistan towards the end of twelfth century
- ^ Lehmann, F. (2014). "Akbar I". In Yarshater, Ehsan (ed.). Encyclopædia Iranica, Online Edition. Encyclopædia Iranica Foundation. Retrieved 29 May 2023.
- ^ "Muhammad Shah". The Cambridge History of India. CUP Archive. 358–364.
- ^ Sacred space and holy war: the politics, culture and history of Shi'ite Islam Archived 29 April 2023 at the Wayback Machine By Juan Ricardo Cole
- ^ Encyclopædia Iranica, [1] Archived 22 September 2017 at the Wayback Machine, R. B. Barnett
- ^ Indian Council of World Affairs(ICWA): Iran-India Relations: Exploring Co-operation in Challenging Times Retrieved 6 August 2010
- ^ "Twice in seven-day, Iran talk of oppressed Kashmiri". The Times of India. Retrieved 5 July 2017.
- ^ "Iran's supreme leader Khamenei rakes up Kashmir bogey twice in two weeks". Retrieved 5 July 2017.
- ^ "For the First Time in Seven Years, Ayatollah Khamenei Rakes Up Kashmir". The wire. Retrieved 27 June 2017.
- ^ a b Aneja, Atul (15 August 2013). "Iran detains Indian tanker carrying crude, wants undertaking". The Hindu. Chennai, India. Retrieved 15 August 2013.
- ^ "Indian ship detention purely a technical issue: Iran". The Hindu. Chennai, India. 17 August 2013. Retrieved 18 August 2013.
- ^ Iran, and greater West Asia. Retrieved 22 May 2016
- ^ "India to sign contract on Chabahar port during PM Narendra Modi's Iran visit". The Economic Times. Retrieved 20 May 2016.
- ^ TIMESOFINDIA.COM (5 July 2017). "As Modi embraces Israel, Iran's Ayatollah Khamenei urges support for "oppressed Muslims" of Kashmir". The Economic Times. Retrieved 13 July 2017.
- ^ "Iran's Ayatollah Ali Khamenei urges Muslims in Kashmir to 'repudiate oppressors'". firstpost.com. 26 June 2017. Retrieved 13 July 2017.
- ^ www.business-standard.com http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/iran-seeks-investmentindia-wants-direct-bilateral-trade/70822/on. Retrieved 14 August 2009.
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(help)[title missing] - ^ India buys more Iran, less Saudi crude oil in '08/09, Reuters, 7 May 2009
- ^ Does US road to better relations with Iran pass through India?, Christian Science Monitor, 18 July 2009
- ^ OVL, IOC, OIL to invest $5bn in Iran gas field, Times of India, 25 June 2009
- ^ a b "India has quit Iran gas pipeline deal: Report". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 10 September 2009.
- ^ "The Iran-Pakistan-India Pipeline…Delayed (Again)". Energy Tribune. Archived from the original on 3 June 2009. Retrieved 8 September 2012.
- ^ a b c d e Solomon, Jay; Sircar, Subhadip (29 December 2010). "India Joins U.S. Effort to Stifle Iran Trade". The Wall Street Journal.
- ^ "Indian stock market daily morning report (December 28, 2010, Tuesday)". Stock Markets Review. Archived from the original on 31 December 2010.
- ^ "RBI stifles Iran oil imports, says won't clear payments". The Times of India.
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- ^ "India was our friend". Rediff.com. Retrieved 8 September 2012.
- ^ "India's anti-Iran votes were coerced, says former US official". www.payvand.com. Retrieved 13 July 2017.
- ^ Rajghatta, Chidanand (20 September 2005). "US-India nuclear deal under Iran gun". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 17 May 2012.
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- ^ India push for Iran's key port development Tehran Times – 6 July 2010
- ^ "Despite U.S. opposition, Iran to be transport hub for North-South Corridor". The Hindu. 31 May 2015. Retrieved 11 April 2015.
- ^ "Transport Corridor offers many opportunities for Indo-Russian trade". Russia & India Report. 29 November 2012. Archived from the original on 13 April 2020. Retrieved 11 April 2015.
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Further reading
- Chopra, R.M. Indo-Iranian Cultural Relations through the Ages. published by Iran Society, Kolkata.
- Chopra, R.M. Indo-Iranian Cultural Relations in the 20th century. Indo-Iranica Vol.57 (1–4)
- Clawson, Patrick. (2005). Eternal Iran: Continuity and Chaos. ISBN 1-4039-6276-6. 2005. MacMillan.
- Multiple authors (2004). "India". Encyclopædia Iranica. (series of entries that cover Indian history and its relations with Iran)
- ISBN 0-295-98206-3.
- Tikku, G.L. (1971). Persian poetry in Kashmir 1339–1846. ISBN 0-520-09312-7
- Section on Persian literature in India: ISBN 90-277-0143-1
- Chopra, R.M., "The Rise Growth And Decline of Indo-Persian Literature", 2012, published by Iran Culture House, New Delhi and Iran Society, Kolkata. 2nd Edition published in 2013.
- Maini,T.S., Sachdeva, S. What Does Iran’s Changing Foreign Policy Mean for India?, IndraStra Global Vol. 003, Issue No: 09 (2017), Article No: 0024, ISSN 2381-3652
- "INDIA ix. RELATIONS: QAJAR PERIOD, EARLY 20TH CENTURY". Encyclopædia Iranica. Vol. XIII. 15 December 2004. pp. 34–44.
- "INDIA viii. RELATIONS: QAJAR PERIOD, THE 19TH CENTURY". Encyclopædia Iranica. Vol. XIII. 15 December 2004. pp. 26–32.