Defence Minister Rajnath Singh Leaves For Iran

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh has left Moscow for Iran on Saturday to meet his Iranian counterpart and discuss bilateral defence ties. A day before he urged the Persian Gulf countries to resolve their differences through dialogue based on mutual respect.

Singh was in Moscow to attend a meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) defence ministers. Bilateral talks were held with Russia, China and the Central Asian countries.

Singh took to his twitter handle to announce his departure.

"Leaving Moscow for Tehran. I shall be meeting the Defence Minister of Iran, Brigadier General Amir Hatami," he tweeted.

In an address at the SCO meeting in Russia, Singh said he was 'deeply concerned' about the situation in the Persian Gulf.

"We call upon countries in the region – all of which are dear and friendly to India, to resolve differences by dialogue based on mutual respect, sovereignty and non interference in internal affairs of each other," he said in his address.

Iranian Navy last month briefly seized control of a Liberian-flagged oil tanker. US on the other hand said these were international waters near the Strait of Hormuz, which links the Persian Gulf with the Gulf of Oman to the south and the Arabian Sea and beyond.

Iran has since threatened to disrupt oil shipments through the Strait of Hormuz if the US tries to 'strangle' its economy.