USA and EU want India to stop dealing with Iran. Sometime back India’s Foreign Secretary Ranjan Mathai visited USA. It is reported that American officials asked him why cannot India reduce its ties with Iran. He replied India imports oil from Iran, there are six million Indians in the Gulf region and Iran is the only land access to Afghanistan and hence difficult to stop reducing ties with Iran.
The reply should have been “Why should India reduce its ties with Iran? India has its interests. India’s foreign policy will not be subservient to foreign policy of any other country.”
Iran becoming a nuclear power is not against India’s national interest. USA did not stop Pakistan from becoming a nuclear power. Israel has nuclear weapons. It is not under IAEA. It has no right to criticize Iran. USA, UK, France and Norway violated NPT and abetted in Israel becoming a nuclear power. They have no right to criticize Iran. Israel has employed terror tactics in various countries. It has killed four Iranian nuclear scientists.
India should tell Iran that it does not want its soil to be used for terror against any country. Some in India objected to Mossad and FBI being part of investigation as Israel and USA were against Iran.
Iran has shown its centrifuges. It has cut off oil supply to Holland, France, Spain, Portugal, Italy and Greece. India needs Iran to have access to Afghanistan and Central Asia. There was trilateral summit where presidents of Iran, Afghanistan and Pakistan participated. It seems USA is getting isolated in Af-Pak region.
Some months back I wrote that India should defy USA, NATO and EU to maintain balance of power. India did not heed my advice. Russia and China did and vetoed two resolutions on Syria in four months.
India gave up Iran-Pakistan-India pipeline deal to suit USA. India voted against Iran in IAEA. India got a nuclear deal with USA. With protests against nuclear reactors the deal is of no use.