“Energy security constitutes the dominant kingpin of India’s foreign policy, and is linked with India’s overarching influence in Middle Eastern countries.” How would you integrate energy security with India’s foreign policy trajectories in the coming years?

India imports over 85% of its crude oil and roughly half of its natural gas; West Asia supplies about half of these imports, hosts a nearly nine-million-strong diaspora and anchors remittances. Energy security is therefore inseparable from India's foreign policy.

Energy-foreign policy linkages so far

• Strategic partnerships with Saudi Arabia (Strategic Partnership Council), the UAE (CEPA 2022, rupee-dirham oil settlements) and Qatar (LNG contract extended to 2048).
• Diversification after the Ukraine war: discounted Russian crude plus US and African supplies reduced single-region dependence.
• Maritime security: Operation Sankalp escorts in the Gulf and naval deployments against Red Sea attacks protect energy sea lanes.
• Institutional buffers: ISPRL strategic petroleum reserves, producer-consumer dialogue with OPEC members, and association with the International Energy Agency.

Integrating energy security ahead

• Hedge chokepoint risk at the Strait of Hormuz and Bab-el-Mandeb through the India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor, the Chabahar long-term pact (2024) and INSTC connectivity.
• Convert oil ties into transition partnerships: Gulf sovereign wealth investment in Indian renewables and green hydrogen (ADNOC, Masdar), grid interconnection under OSOWOG, and the International Solar Alliance.
• Critical-minerals diplomacy through KABIL and the Mineral Security Partnership; civil nuclear expansion, including small modular reactors, as a long-term hedge.
• De-hyphenated engagement across the Saudi-Iran-Israel divides — leveraging I2U2 while insulating supplies from escalations such as the 2025 Israel-Iran conflict.

Energy security should evolve from transactional barrel-buying into a layered strategy — diversified suppliers, secure sea lanes, larger reserves and green-transition partnerships — making West Asia policy the pivot of an energy-secure, net-zero-bound Indian foreign policy.