India says concerned over situation in Gulf region

India has voiced concern over the situation in the Gulf region, saying competing geo-strategic interests can lead to an avoidable conflict that will have a disastrous impact on the security and development of the countries in the region and beyond.

"There is also a growing concern over the situation in the Gulf region, where competing geo-strategic interests can lead to an avoidable conflict, which will have disastrous impact on the security and development of the countries in the region and beyond," Minister of State for External Affairs V Muraleedharan said Monday during the informal meeting of the Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures (CICA) Ministers for Foreign Affairs on the sidelines of the 74th UN General Assembly session.

He said as a responsible nation of the region, India has deployed its naval ships in the Gulf, alongside other nations, to ensure that there is no interruption in trade and movement of ships.

"We are hopeful that we will be able to prevent any escalation in the situation into a conflict through dialogue and diplomacy."