Iran allows 2 Indian-flagged LPG carriers to cross Strait of Hormuz

Modi said he had discussed the “safety and security of Indian citizens” and the “need for uninterrupted flow of goods and energy” with Pezeshkian.

Updated on: Mar 14, 2026, 10:01:46 IST

By Rezaul H Laskar, NEW DELHI

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Iran has ‌allowed two Indian-flagged liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) carriers to sail through the Strait of Hormuz, Iranian officials said on Friday, a development expected to ease a cooking gas crisis in India.

FILE PHOTO: Tankers sail in the Gulf, near the Strait of Hormuz, as seen from northern Ras al-Khaimah, near the border with Oman’s Musandam governance, amid the U.S.-Israeli conflict with Iran, in UAE on March 11 (REUTERS)

“The vessels have been permitted to move through the Strait of Hormuz,” said a person who declined to be identified, without giving details.

The move came hours after phone conversations between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian – their first since the start of the Iran-US conflict – and external affairs minister S Jaishankar and his Iranian counterpart Seyed Abbas Araghchi.

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Modi said he had discussed the “safety and security of Indian citizens” and the “need for uninterrupted flow of goods and energy” with Pezeshkian, describing them as India’s top priorities.

Earlier on Friday, Iranian ambassador Mohammad Fathali indicated that Indian vessels would be granted safe passage through the Strait of Hormuz, a critical shipping route that transports nearly 50% of India’s oil imports.

“We believe that Iran and India are friends. We have common interests, we have a common fate,” Fathali told reporters when he was asked if Indian vessels would be allowed to pass the Strait of Hormuz.

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“The Government of India, in this situation after the war, helped us in different fields,” he said, adding that positive developments regarding transit through the crucial waterway were expected in “two or three hours”.

People familiar with the matter said the Indian side continues to be in touch with Iran regarding safe passage for some two dozen Indian-flagged vessels currently located west of the Strait of Hormuz.

In a separate development, a crude tanker is expected to arrive in India on Saturday, carrying Saudi Arabian oil after sailing through the strait, people said.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Rezaul H Laskar
Rezaul Hasan Laskar is Foreign Editor with the Hindustan Times, which he joined in 2015. He began as a journalist in his hometown of Shillong in northeast India and has worked in newspapers and wire services over the years. He moved to New Delhi in 1997 and initially focused on defence, national security, Jammu and Kashmir and the northeast, while also working of foreign policy and international relations. He has been part of the media delegation accompanying PMs on foreign visits and has reported from destinations ranging from Tibet to Ukraine. Between 2007 and 2013, he was the Press Trust of India correspondent in Pakistan, one of only two Indian journalists allowed to report from the country. He extensively covered Pakistan’s domestic politics and the life of the common people, as well as the fallout of the 2008 Mumbai attacks on India-Pakistan relations and the subsequent trial in Pakistan of the suspects involved in the attack. As part of his reportage in Pakistan, he travelled the breadth of the country, from the Swat Valley to Balochistan. Reza’s first gig in journalism was writing a weekly music column, and music – especially classic rock – remains a keen interest. He is also a movie buff and a keen photographer.Read More

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