Question: Who is the current foreign minister of Iran carried out its visit to India?
(a) Hassan Rouhani
(b) Mohammad Javad Zarif
(c) Asad Rohilla
(d) Ikram Mohammed
Answer: (b)
Related facts:
- Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif was on a visit of India on May 13-14, 2019.
- This visit comes at a time when US ended sanctions exemption to India for importing Iran oil after May 1 and India decided to follow U.S. restrictions on buying Iranian oil.
- Zarif met External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj and other officials in the visit.
- This sudden visit is just three weeks after President Donald Trump decided to squeeze Iran and revoking the sanctions granted for exemption to Iran’s oil customers.
- India will decide over the purchase of Iranian energy after the general election and the formation of new government.
ssues discussed in the visit:
- The issue of continued oil export to India despite US sanction was at the top of agenda during the visit.
- The end of the waiver means India cannot import oil from Iran; if imported, Indian enterprises will face US sanction. The two sides are likely to discuss the impact of the US decision in there relation.
- Both the leaders also discussed the outlook of Chabahar port project as the Trump administration has assured for the exemption on Chabahar port.
- India and Iran also expressed satisfaction at the operationalization of the interim contract between India Ports Global Limited (IPGL) and Ports and Maritime Organisation (PMO).
ecent happenings:
- US last year came out of the JCPOA deal that took place between P5 (UNSC permanent members) and Iran to curb the nuclear programme of Iran resulting to the exemption of sanctions imposed on it.
- US had led the move at the United Nations Security Council in listing Jaish-e-Mohammad chief Masood Azhar as a global terrorist, a move India was trying from a decade long time.
India-Iran relations:
- India and Iran shares a close trade and cultural relations with each other. India is building Chabahar Port in Iran to exempt Pakistan in the route of trading with Afghanistan and Middle East.
- Iran is India’s third-largest oil supplier behind Iraq and Saudi Arabia.
- It was second largest after Saudi Arabia until 2010-11. In, India bought 11 million tonnes and 10.95 million tonnes in 2013-14 and 2014-15 respectively from Iran.
- This increased to 12.7 million tonnes in 2015-16, before supplies of 27.2 million tonnes catapulted Iran to the third spot in 2016-17.
- India imported $97 billion worth of petroleum oil and oil obtained from bituminous minerals crude between April 2018 and January 2019.
- The US decision to end waivers for countries importing crude from Iran beginning May 2 may hurt India’s interests, as it will have to look for alternative sources.
Links:
https://thediplomat.com/2019/01/in-india-iranian-foreign-minister-discusses-sanctions-crude-exports-and-more/
https://www.foxnews.com/world/iran-foreign-minister-visits-india-amid-falling-oil-revenue