The Evolution of Indian Foreign Policy Towards Iran (from 2014 to 2024)

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

Hadi Narouei ¹

Amir Hossein Elhami ²

Abolfazl Kavandi Kateb ³

¹ PhD Student in International Relations, Faculty of Humanities, Tarbiat Modares University, Tehran, Iran.

² PhD graduate in Political Geography, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran.

³ Assistant Professor, Department of Geography, Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Mohaghegh Ardabili, Ardabil, Iran.

10.22067/irlip.2026.91404.1609

Abstract

Entering the 21st century, Iran and India significantly expanded their political, economic, military, and energy relations, culminating in the signing of a strategic partnership agreement in 2003. Despite challenges posed by Iran's nuclear ambitions and the nuclear agreement between India and the United States, the two countries maintained strong ties in security, economy, and energy until 2014. With the inauguration of the Narendra Modi administration in 2014, India’s "Look West policy" evolved into the "Act West Policy", reflecting a more dynamic approach to its foreign relations in the West Asian region. Given this shift in India’s foreign policy, it becomes essential to investigate what changes have occurred in India's approach towards Iran between 2014 and 2024. Using the Balance of Interests theory, this study hypothesizes that the most significant development in India’s foreign policy towards Iran during this period is the diminishing strategic importance of Iran for India. This shift is attributed to diverging interests, primarily driven by India's growing ties with Iran's regional competitors, including its cooperation with U.S. sanctions against Iran, a revised stance on terrorism in West Asia, efforts to bypass Iran through the India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor (IMEEC), and its participation in the West Asian Quad (I2U2). The findings reveal that India has moved away from a balanced approach in its relations with Iran and its regional rivals. The research employs The hypothetico-deductive method for analysis and the data-gathering procedure is based on library findings.

Keywords

Balance of Interests

IMEEC

Iran-India relations

terrorism

West Asian Quad

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