Page 2 - West Asia And The Gulf

Xi calls for immediate end to West Asia hostilities during talks with Putin

Chinese President Xi Jinping on Wednesday called for an immediate end to hostilities in West Asia, saying the situation had reached a "critical juncture", as he held talks with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin here amid escalating regional tensions. Welcoming Putin at the Great Hall of the People, Xi said renewed fighting in the Gulf and the wider West Asia must be avoided and stressed that negotiations should continue. An early end to the conflict will help ease disruptions to energy supplies, industrial and supply chains, and the international trade order, the Chinese president said. The talks between Xi and Putin came days after US President Donald Trump visited China from May 14-15 and held extensive discussions with the Chinese leader on the Iran-Israel conflict, the Strait of Hormuz and bilateral trade frictions. The meeting is being closely watched as both China and Russia are key strategic partners of Iran with close economic and military ties to Tehran and could ...

Iran could trigger 'nuclear arms race' in West Asia, says J D Vance

US Vice President J D Vance has said Iran having an atomic weapon would trigger a "nuclear arms race" worldwide and asserted that the US was "locked and loaded" to restart military operations if Tehran failed to reach a peace deal. Vance's remarks at a press conference at the White House on Tuesday came a day after President Donald Trump put off the decision to resume strikes on Iran at the request of Arab nations, including Qatar and the UAE, who said that Tehran was being "reasonable" in peace talks. "We think the Iranians want to make a deal. The president of the United States has asked us to negotiate in good faith. And that's exactly what we've done," the vice president said. But Vance warned that diplomacy will not come at the cost of Trump's key demand that Iran never obtain a nuclear weapon. "So as the president just told me, we're locked and loaded," Vance said, adding that he had a meeting with Trump before coming to the press briefing. "We don't want to go down that ...

Indian markets can absorb shocks amid West Asia crisis, says Sebi chief

Volatility has shot up in the financial markets due to the ongoing West Asia conflict, but the Indian bourses have the capacity to "absorb different types of shocks", Sebi Chairman Tuhin Kanta Pandey said on Monday. When there is a crisis in one part of the world, it also impacts the rest of the globe, Pandey told reporters here on the sideline of the Regional Investors Seminar for Awareness. "Due to the prevailing conflict in West Asia, the oil supply chain and its prices got affected in the rest of the world. All the economies have been affected by this and obviously, there are inflationary risks. Besides, spillover effect and second-order effect will also come in," he said. "However, the advantages of a resilient Indian market are that it is able to absorb different types of shocks, and when these end, the market again resumes its normal trajectory," Pandey said. He also admitted that there have been some foreign portfolio investment outflows since September 2024, but domestic .

Iran plans new Hormuz traffic mechanism, fees for vessels to apply

Ebrahim Azizi, head of Iran parliament's national security committee, said details of the route system would be unveiled soon

Iran welcomes India's peace push, blames 'one' BRICS nation over deadlock

Iran will welcome any initiative by major powers like India to bring peace to West Asia and it is developing a new service-and-payment-based framework for the passage of merchant vessels through the Strait of Hormuz in line with international norms, Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi said on Wednesday. Gharibabadi, currently in New Delhi, told a select group of journalists that a demand by "one member country" of the BRICS to condemn Iran has prevented the grouping from reaching a unified position on the regional conflict, an apparent reference to the United Arab Emirates. "We want India's BRICS chairship to be successful. It is not a good approach to send a signal to the world that the BRICS is divided. One country is insisting to condemn Iran," he said. "We have not attacked neighbouring countries. They handed their territories to the US to launch an attack on us. We never insisted that Arab countries should be condemned as they allowed their military bases to the .

Trump, UAE's Al Nahyan discuss bilateral ties, developments in West Asia

The two leaders also exchanged views on the latest developments in the West Asia

Qatar asks LNG ships to go dark near export hub over security concerns

At least nine LNG tankers that were anchored near Qatar stopped sending signals from May 11, according to ship-tracking data compiled by Bloomberg

Kuwait accuses Iran of sending armed Guard team to attack island in nation

Kuwait on Tuesday accused Iran of sending an armed Revolutionary Guard team to attack an island in the Middle East nation. Iran didn't immediately acknowledge the allegation by Kuwait, which came under repeated attack by Iran in the war. Kuwait said that a team of six armed members of the Guard tried to infiltrate Bubiyan Island in the northwest corner of the Persian Gulf near Iraq and Iran. It accused the team of planning to carry out "hostile acts." Kuwait said that it detained four of the men, while two escaped. Kuwait, which said one of its security officials had been wounded in the attack.

West Asia crisis set to dominate BRICS foreign ministers' meeting this week

The escalating crisis in West Asia and its impact on the global energy supply chain are expected to dominate deliberations at a two-day meeting of BRICS foreign ministers to be hosted by India this week. While Tehran has informed New Delhi that Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi is set to attend the May 14-15 conclave, sources suggest his plans could change if the situation in the region changes dramatically. Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi will skip the meeting as his presence is required in Beijing for US President Donald Trump's three-day state visit, which coincides with the BRICS gathering. Chinese Ambassador to India Xi Feihong will attend the meeting on Wang's behalf, Beijing announced on Tuesday. Foreign ministers of several BRICS member states including Russia's Sergey Lavrov have already confirmed their participation, the sources said. The BRICS foreign ministers will also call on Prime Minister Narendra Modi. India, as the chair of the BRICS, is hosting the conclave of t

West Asia crisis to hit Indian GCC sector: Nasscom president Rajesh Nambiar

Nasscom president Rajesh Nambiar warned that a prolonged West Asia crisis could delay global firms' GCC investment decisions in India

Donald Trump calls Iran proposal 'stupid' amid West Asia conflict

Speaking to reporters in the Oval Office, Trump reiterated that Iran would not be allowed to develop a nuclear weapon

West Asia conflict highlights need for India to build natural gas reserves

Rising import dependence and supply disruptions amid West Asia tensions underscore the urgency for India to build strategic natural gas reserves and strengthen LNG storage capacity

Iran ceasefire tested as cargo ship catches fire, Kuwait says drone attack

The shaky ceasefire in the Iran war was tested again on Sunday when a cargo ship caught fire after being hit by an unknown projectile off Qatar's coast, and Kuwait's military reported an attack by drones, without specifying where they came from. The attacks were the latest threats to a month-old ceasefire, which the Trump administration says remains in effect. It has faced difficulties, with Iran restricting traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, a strategic waterway key to the global flow of oil, and the US imposing a blockade of Iranian ports. Washington has been awaiting Iran's response to a new proposal for a deal to end the war, reopen the strait to shipping and roll back Iran's nuclear programme. One of the main sticking points in the negotiations is the fate of Iran's stockpile of highly enriched uranium. The UN nuclear agency says Iran has more than 440 kg (970 pounds) of uranium that is enriched up to 60% purity, a short, technical step from weapons-grade levels. In an ...

Qatar LNG tanker makes fresh attempt to transit through Hormuz Strait

The ship is navigating the Tehran-approved northern route near Qeshm and Larak islands, the tracking data show