Iran Hails India Ties After PM Modi-Pezeshkian Meet, Seeks More Trade At BRICS Summit

Iran has described its relations with India as a civilizational and long-standing partnership, indicating that it plans to use President Masoud Pezeshkian's forthcoming visit to New Delhi to enhance bilateral trade and strategic cooperation. Tehran made the remarks days after Pezeshkian met Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Summit in Bishkek, the capital of Kyrgyzstan.Iran sees the multilateral grouping as an important avenue to push forward discussions with New Delhi on areas of mutual interest, with Pezeshkian scheduled to travel to India for the on September 12 and 13.

Esmail Baghaei, the spokesperson for the Iranian Foreign Ministry, underlined the importance Tehran places on its ties with New Delhi, while referring to Pezeshkian’s recent diplomatic engagements. He said, “India is an important partner of Iran, especially in the fields of trade and economic cooperation.” The Iranian Embassy in India also pointed out the significance of the relationship on X in a post. Referring to Pezeshkian’s meeting with Modi, the embassy said, “A meeting that President Masoud Pezeshkian held was with the Prime Minister of India. We have a historic and civilizational relationship with India and we attach great importance to our ties with India.

Tehran aims to continue consultations with India and explore opportunities for closer cooperation through the BRICS platform, Baghaei said. “We will definitely seize the opportunity offered by the BRICS Summit to pursue our discussions and consultations with India on areas of mutual interest,” Baghaei said.

Iran has cited trade and economic engagement as important ways to deepen cooperation between the two countries. India has a big role in the big multilateral forums, a member of both the SCO and BRICS, Baghaei said. “India is a member of both the Shanghai Cooperation Organization and BRICS,” he said.“It is also one of the countries with which we have good relations in many areas, particularly in trade and economic cooperation,” he said.

Tehran’s remarks imply that the upcoming BRICS meeting could be more than just a multilateral discussion, as Iran is eager to use the opportunity to directly engage with India on common economic priorities.

Connectivity and logistics infrastructure are also expected to remain high on the agenda between the two countries, with the Chabahar Port remaining a key subject of discussion. BAGHEI said: "During consultations between Iran and India, usually various issues are discussed including the Chabahar Port, which is important to the two countries.“Overall, the relationship with India is positive and is continuing to develop,” said the Iranian spokesperson. "Our relationship with India is very good and is developing further overall as I said," he added.

The latest Iranian comments come after a meeting between Modi and Pezeshkian last week in Bishkek. The meeting was also significant as it was the first time the two leaders had met for two years. During the talks, India reiterated its support for efforts to ensure long-term peace and stability in the region. Modi also reiterated India’s willingness to work closely with Iran on multilateral platforms like BRICS and SCO.

Pezeshkian told the Prime Minister that he wanted to invite the Iranian President to visit India for the BRICS Summit. India also said it was ready to increase economic ties with Tehran by broadening and diversifying the channels of bilateral trade.

PM Modi wrote in a post on X after the meeting, “Met President Masoud Pezeshkian in Bishkek. Reiterated commitment to bolster India’s long-standing friendship with Iran across a range of sectors. We want to expand and diversify our trade basket in the coming times. We talked about the current situation in the region. India will continue to support all efforts for sustainable peace.”

The meeting between the two leaders came at a time when ongoing conflicts in West Asia have raised concerns over regional stability, trade and maritime logistics. Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal described the Modi-Pezeshkian interaction as a “fruitful meeting”. He said the leaders discussed various aspects of bilateral relations and developments in the West Asia region.

The two leaders shared views on a host of issues related to bilateral relations. They spoke about the recent developments in the West Asia region. The Prime Minister reiterated India’s consistent position that all issues should be resolved through dialog and diplomacy. Jaiswal wrote in a post on X that the Prime Minister also stressed the need for sustained efforts to ensure peace and stability in the region, and to safeguard freedom of navigation and commerce.

Iran’s Foreign Minister, Seyed Abbas Araghchi and other senior officials from Tehran were also present during the meeting between Modi and Pezeshkian. The meetings were held against a backdrop of continuing instability in West Asia where conflicts continue to impact regional security, maritime movement and commercial logistics.

Pezeshkian’s forthcoming visit provides the two countries with another chance to follow up on the talks in Bishkek. While BRICS provides the broader multilateral framework, Iran’s focus on trade, economic cooperation, connectivity and the Chabahar Port indicates that bilateral priorities are likely to remain at the core of the engagement.For New Delhi and Tehran, the immediate priority would be to consolidate their long-standing partnership and find ways to expand economic cooperation and address common regional issues through dialog and multilateral forums.