Aiming to boost the bilateral ties between the two countries, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday held a bilateral meeting with Iran's President Dr Masoud Pezeshkian on sidelines of the 18th BRICS at the Bharat Mandapam in New Delhi.
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India has been in consistent touch with the Iranian leadership since the beginning of the US-Iran war earlier this year, with PM Modi calling for dialogue and diplomacy in resolving the conflict in the region. Iran has blamed the US and Israel for the conflicted, and maintained that it wants peace in the region. This was reiterated by Pezeshkian during his address at the BRICS Business Forum earlier in the day when he also called for a stronger shift toward local currencies in bloc's trade. In his address, the Iranian president said Tehran is a key link in BRICS energy, food and transport supply chains because of its geographical location. Criticising the "extensive sanctions" imposed on Iran by West, Pezeshkian said economic security cannot be separated from national and regional security. "The question is, what is BRICS' response to these challenges? We believe that the true strength of BRICS is not confined merely to the size of its members' economies; rather, it becomes more apparent when these capacities are transformed into a network of trade, investment, and joint financing, that is, a transition from potential cooperation to operational one," he said. "Whenever the trade, energy, infrastructure, or financial system of a country comes under political or military pressure, its effect extends beyond that country's borders and can affect regional stability and even the global one," he underlined. ALSO READ: Breaking News Live on indiatvnews.com and Get Latest English News & Updates from India