Pulwama, May 08: Minister of External Affairs of India, Dr. S. Jaishankar, on Thursday said that India does not intend to escalate the situation, but any military action against the country will be met with a firm response.
The statement came during his opening remarks at the 20th India-Iran Joint Commis-sion Meeting, which he co-chaired with Iranian Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi.
Dr. Jaishankar said it was a great pleasure to welcome the Iranian Foreign Minister and his delegation to India and to co-chair the 20th India-Iran Joint Commission Meeting alongside him.
The Minister of External Affairs noted that in recent years, cooperation between the two countries has progressed in many areas.
He added that there are also certain situations the two sides need to address.
He remarked that Prime Minister Modi and President Pezeshkian had met in Kazan in October 2024 and provided guidance on how to further develop bilateral ties. He also mentioned that the two leaders had a phone conversation on 26 April.
Dr. Jaishankar highlighted that this year marks the 75th anniversary of diplomatic ties between India and Iran—an occasion that reflects the close collaboration and deep friendship between the two nations.
He expressed confidence to commemorate the anniversary in a meaningful way.
“Excellency, you are visiting India at a time when we are responding to a particularly barbaric terrorist attack on 22 April in the Indian Union Territory of Jammu and Kash-mir,” he remarked, adding that the attack compelled India to respond on 7th May by striking at cross-border terrorist infrastructure.
“Our response was targeted and measured. It is not our intention to escalate the situa-tion. However, if there are military attacks on us, there should be no doubt that it will be met with a very firm response. As a neighbour and close partner, it is important that you have a good understanding of this situation,” he said.
In his opening remarks the Iranian counterpart acknowledged the historic ties between India and Iran, stating that the two countries have always shared warm and friendly re-lations rooted in mutual respect and shared interests, which have endured over the years.
“The economic cooperation between Iran and India is good, but not to the extent we ex-pect. This is due to sanctions, and we hope that we can overcome this problem in the fu-ture,” the Iranian Foreign Minister said.
The Iranian Minister arrived in New Delhi on Wednesday amid high tensions between India and Pakistan.
Earlier the Iranian Minister visited Pakistan on 5 May, 2025.
