Iranian FM Abbas Araghchi lands in Delhi for Crucial BRICS FM Meet Amid West Asia Crisis

Iranian Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi arrived in New Delhi on Wednesday late night, marking Tehran's first major diplomatic outreach to India since the eruption of the US-Israel conflict with Iran over two months ago.

The Iranian Foreign Minister is visiting the capital to participate in the two-day BRICS Foreign Ministers Meeting (May 14-15) being hosted by India as the current chair of the grouping.

During the visit, he is also expected to meet his Indian counterpart, External Affairs Minister Dr. Jaishankar, and discuss the deteriorating situation in West Asia and the issues of safe maritime navigation as the situation in the Strait of Hormuz remains tense, impacting the global supply chain of oil and LNG.

According to officials, the Indian side is likely to push for the safe passage of Indian vessels through this crucial chokepoint.

As the situation in the region continues to remain tense, there are expectations that the issue is likely to dominate the BRICS Foreign Ministers' Meeting.

Aragchi and other foreign ministers of the BRICS grouping are also likely to call on Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday.

Similarly, it will be interesting to see if the grouping under the Chair of India would be able to come up with a joint declaration, given the fact that both Saudi Arabia and UAE are a part of this grouping and share tense relations with Tehran.

The two gulf nations have faced attacks by Iran on their key economic infrastructure since the eruption of war on February 28 while Tehran accuses them of facilitating America's military operations given the presence of US military bases on their soil.

Notably, last month at the BRICS Deputy Foreign Ministers and Special Envoys on the Middle East and North America (MENA), failed to reach a consensus over the ongoing tensions and did not come up with a joint declaration. 

Iran's Deputy Foreign Minister for Legal and International Affairs Dr. Kazem Gharibabadi also arrived in New Delhi just hours before the arrival of the Iranian Foreign Minister and said that "Tehran is in favour of having a BRICS joint statement."

He also called upon friendly countries to come up with new initiatives which can help in stopping the war.

"Whatever role India plays and comes with any initiative, we will welcome," he said.

This is Aragchi's first visit to India since the beginning of this war. The last time he visited Delhi was in 2025 in May to co-chair the 20th Joint Commission Meeting between the two countries.