Will the Iran war slowly morph into another Gulf War? Sanjiv Arora, former diplomat and ambassador to Qatar and Lebanon does not think so.
In a discussion on The Gist, Arora pointed out that the Gulf War of 1990 had UN sanction, unfortunately the Israeli-US decision to wage war on Iran has no UN sanction. Nor for that matter, has US President Donald Trump sought congressional sanction.
“Tragically, I would say it has jeopardized regional peace and security, I would say global peace and security. And the manifestations are manifold. I mean, it’s the humanitarian, tragedy. It is the number of people killed in Iran.”
Also Lebanon where in response to attacks by Hezbollah, Israeli counter strikes have targeted southern Lebanon. Ambassador Arora also pointed out that India has 900 army personnel stationed in south Lebanon and their continued well being today remains suspect. But Arora is concerned about the humanitarian cost of what Israel is pursuing.
“An exercise in rationalizing the aggression by sometimes talking of nuclear capability, sometimes talking of regime change, the process that had taken place within Iran recently? And of course, raising this bogey time and again of Iran being an existential threat to Israel. And the Iranians say the same about Israel.”
Arora believes India, given its stakes in the Gulf region including the dependence on imported energy, must have a full scale discussion in parliament. Opposition and government must sit together and reach a consensus on the war.
India must convene an emergency ministerial session at the level of foreign ministers of BRICs countries in a virtual format because this is war time. That way you can have interlocutors from Iran, Saudi Arabia, UAE sitting together. Bringing them together, being at the same table would be a credible a concrete demonstration of our good offices.
Tune in for more in this conversation with Sanjiv Arora, former ambassador to Qatar and Lebanon.
