“Khamenei’s killing to my mind is an atrocious violation of international law. You don’t legally assassinate the leader of a country simply because you have differences with that country. What is it that made India remain silent?”
Former foreign secretary Kanwal Sibal believes that India could have condoled the death of Iran’s Supreme Leader without accusing the US or even bringing the US into it.
“It could have been done. Why we didn’t do it, I’m at a loss to understand.”
Nor has India said anything about Mojtaba Khamenei’s elevation to the position his father held. On that score, Ambassador Sibal, during an interview on The Gist, does not believe any comment from India is required.
There is no equivalent to Supreme Leader in India, more so when that leader has religious authority. For India, it seems, President Pezeshkian remains the constitutional limit even when the Supreme Leader is a position of considerable authority.
“We have mishandled our relationship with Iran because there has been a lot of pressure on us, not now, but for a long time. The United States demanded when we were negotiating the nuclear deal that India does no defense cooperation with Iran and more importantly, not buy any oil from Iran.”
The US did give India a waiver for a long time but eventually Delhi had to stop buying Iranian oil even thought Tehran was the biggest supplier. That decision was taken in the “larger national interest”, he said, and there were other Gulf suppliers who stepped in.
But India has remained engaged with that country. A number of Iranian presidents have come to India and Indian leaders have gone there. But Delhi’s room for maneuver vis a vis Iran has been shrinking given US pressure and even Chahbahar had to be given up.
India could have condoled the death of Iranian naval personnel on board the IRIS Dena, that was torpedoed by an American submarine. But again silence.
“Messages of condolences would have helped in talking to Iran. Now we are trying now to catch up and make up for what we failed to do earlier.”
Tune in for more in this interview with Kanwal Sibal, former foreign secretary and ambasador to Russia and France.
