Revision History

The U.S. submarine torpedoing of the Iranian frigate IRIS Dena — which had just departed Indian-hosted naval exercises — has exposed the untenable contradictions in India's long-standing Middle East neutrality. With $50 billion in Gulf remittances, 40 percent of its oil imports transiting the now-closed Strait of Hormuz, and its strategic Chabahar port investment frozen under U.S. sanctions pressure, India faces converging crises that its traditional multi-alignment diplomacy may no longer be able to manage.