War transcends geography. India may be geographically distant from the embers emanating from the conflict taking place in West Asia. But that does not mean that it is immune to the conflict’s wide-ranging impacts. From kitchens to wallets, the deepening energy crisis in fuel and gas is expected to leave an imprint on India’s shores. Recently, the rumbles of war echoed even closer when an Iranian ship returning after a naval exercise in India was sunk by the United States of America on international waters. The plight of another Indian cohort — sailors and ships operating in the Strait of Hormuz — must be added to this list of mounting concerns. India has already protested against the strike on a Thailand-flagged vessel that was hit with projectiles in the Strait of Hormuz on Wednesday. External ministry data suggest that two Indians have been reported to be killed and one is missing in assaults on merchant ships in the course of the West Asia crisis. But the risk is steeper. This is because according to the data from the ministry of ports, shipping and waterways, 28 Indian-flagged vessels are operating in the Persian Gulf: 677 Indian sailors are aboard ships to the west of the Hormuz Strait and there 101 seafarers from this country on ships to the east of Hormuz. There have been whispers that Iran will permit Indian carriers to transit these treacherous waters but certainty has eluded this assertion. In any case, the unpredictable nature of the conflict will heighten the risk for ships and naval personnel in this zone.
Ensuring the safety of these lives as well as the vessels on sea is of utmost — national — importance. The prime minister has assured that Indians stranded in the war zone will not be abandoned. New Delhi also has a rich experience when it comes to rescuing Indian émigrés from conflict zones around the world. But the task is challenging, to say the least. New Delhi must fall back on its dense network of cooperation not only with Tehran but also the other stakeholders in this crisis — the Gulf nations, the United States of America and Israel — for ensuring safe passage to the ships. This must also be an instance of quiet but intense diplomatic engagement, something that the Indian diplomatic corps are well-versed in. Simultaneously, New Delhi must forcefully speak out in favour of the cessation of the war. The longer it goes, the more onerous its consequences for India, Indians and the world.