- By Mayukh Debnath
- Sat, 13 Jan 2024 07:13 PM (IST)
- Source:JND
Jaishankar Iran Visit: External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar will embark on a two-day official visit to Iran on Sunday (January 14), the Ministry of External Affairs confirmed on Saturday. The visit will come as part of the ongoing high-level exchanges between New Delhi and Tehran, the ministry said.
During his visit, Jaishankar will hold a meeting with his Iranian counterpart, Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, wherein the duo will disccuss bilateral, regional and global issues, the ministry added. "Political cooperation, connectivity initiatives and strong people-to-people ties will constitute important aspects of the agenda," the ministry said in a statement.
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The upcoming visit will take place amidst the regional upheavel in the Middle East triggered by the ongoing armed conflict between Israel and Palestinian militant outfit Hamas, which is backed by Iran, in the Gaza Strip. In a report published by news agency PTI on Friday, it was reported that Jaishankar and Amir-Abdollahian are expected to discuss the unfolding security situation in the Red Sea as part of the bilateral engagement.
The Red Sea shipping corridor has witnessed an escalation in attacks on commercial vessels by Yemen-based Houthi militia, another Iranian proxy in the Middle East, in the recent months after the movement threatened to target ships owned or operated by Israeli companies amidst the ongoing Israel-Hamas conflict.
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The issue figured in a telephonic conversion between Jaishankar and US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Thursday. On the intervening night of Friday (January 12) and Saturday (January 13), US forces carried out a fresh round of airstrikes on Houthi positions in the wake of the Washington's vow to protect shipping lanes in the Red Sea from attacks by the Iran-aligned movement.
According to the US, the latest strikes targeted a radar site. The additional airstrikes came a day after dozens of similar American and British strikes on Houthi targets.
(With inputs from agencies)
