'Once We Are Freed, India-Iran Can Start An Entirely New Chapter': Former Crown Prince Reza Pahlavi

Amid the unrest in Iran, exiled crown prince, Reza Pahlavi, said that once the nation is freed from the Ayatollah regime, it would seek close relations with India. Speaking at a news conference on Friday, he hinted that the new government would be democratic in form and it would seek the “best possible relationship” with any country which values sovereignty and liberty and work with Iran as partners across various domains.

Recalling the time when former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi had visited Iran, Pahlavi who has been in exile for almost 50 years said, “I was very young at the time, so the relationship goes back a long time.” He added that both the countries had been in good relations with one another in modern times.

Pointing out the shared civilizational heritage between the two countries since ancient times, the exiled prince said, "It's a rich culture and the rich history that we observe in India as well. I think we can, as nations, be very proud of our heritage, and this could be a natural path to a very good bond and cooperation."

Acknowledging the strength of India in combating climate change, Pahlavi said that the two countries may possibly engage with each other on issues of population, energy, water crisis, new and renewable energy and other emerging sectors. He also hailed India for taking up a leadership role in domains like technology.

"I'm looking forward to have our experts, our entrepreneurs, our business sector, and anybody else working very closely with our Indian counterpart," he added.

"Hopefully once we are freed, we can start an entirely new chapter," Pahlavi emphasised.

India-Iran Ties

Iran and India share cultural links tracing far back to the 20th century. Relations between the two counries evolved since the 1979 Islamic Revolution. However, it received a setback owing to recent sanctions by the Trump administration. 

India was forced to halt its oil imports from Iran, despite it being a traditional exporter of oil to the country. The two countries had to start trading in agricultural goods like rice. India and Iran are also facing challenges in developing strategic projects like the Chabahar Port, owing to the crippling sanctions.

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