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PM Modi speaks to France's Macron, calls for ‘early restoration of peace’ in West Asia
Modi said he discussed the shared Indo-French concerns about the evolving situation in West Asia and the need to return to dialogue and diplomacy with Macron.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday spoke with French President Emmanuel Macron amid concerns that the Middle East conflict could spill over into other areas.
PM Modi revealed that he discussed the shared Indo-French concerns about the evolving situation in West Asia and the need to return to dialogue and diplomacy in a telephone call.
“Spoke with my friend President Emmanuel Macron today. We discussed our shared concerns over the evolving situation in West Asia and the need for a return to dialogue and diplomacy. We will continue to engage closely and coordinate efforts towards the early restoration of peace and stability in the region,” he wrote on X.
Prime Minister Modi spoke to eight leaders of West Asia since the beginning of the military conflict, before speaking to Macron on Thursday. The phone call also comes a day after the US sank an Iranian navy vessel off the coast of Sri Lanka on Wednesday, thus bringing its conflict with Tehran almost to India's doorstep.
At least 84 sailors died, and 32 survivors were rescued by the Sri Lankan authorities. The vessel left India after taking part in the International fleet review just a few days ago.
The US-Iran war
The conflict in West Asia began after the US and Israel launched joint military strikes on Iran on February 28, killing Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
Following the military offensive, Iran has carried out a wave of attacks targeting Israeli and American military bases in several Gulf countries, including the UAE, Bahrain, Kuwait, Jordan and Saudi Arabia.
In the last few days, the conflict has widened significantly with attacks and counter-attacks by both sides. The US, on March 4, torpedoed the Iranian ship off the coast of Sri Lanka.
Sri Lanka's navy said that it received a distress signal from the ship at 5:08am on March 4. The Iranian warship had 180 people on board.
Iranian foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, condemned the attack and said that IRIS Dena was hit “without warning.” In an X post, Araghchi added that “the US will bitterly regret the precedent it has set.”
