NEW DELHI: External affairs minister S Jaishankar spoke to his US counterpart Marco Rubio late on Monday about the situation in the West Asia region, amid renewed hopes of an early end to the conflict.Jaishankar said he had a detailed conversation with Rubio on the West Asia conflict and its impact on the international economy. “We particularly spoke about energy security concerns. Agreed to remain in touch,” he said in a post on X.The conversation followed the announcement by US President Donald Trump that the US will hold off on striking Iran’s power plants for five more days. However, while Trump said that this was a result of “very good and productive” conversations with Iran, Tehran denied that it was involved in any negotiations with the US. India has been particularly concerned about the attacks on energy infrastructure last week, and PM Modi has condemned these attacks in his talks with the Gulf leaders and also with Iran President Masoud Pezeshkian.There were also reports that cited multiple sources to say US and Iranian officials could meet in Islamabad as early as this week to carry forward the peace talks. Earlier in the day, Jaishankar met the ambassadors of all GCC countries. “…Thanked them for their continued support to the Indian community in the region,” said the minister, who also spoke to his German and Sri Lankan counterparts. tnn
