The first bilateral meeting between the oil ministers of Iran and India since Washington reimposed sanctions in 2018 has taken place on the sidelines of the BRICS energy ministers’ gathering in Gurugram, India. The encounter follows the United States’ issuance of a 60-day waiver permitting the export of Iranian crude, a move that temporarily alters the legal landscape for buyers who had entirely halted purchases. India, which before 2019 sourced as much as 518,000 barrels per day from Iran, suspended imports after the Trump administration’s withdrawal from the nuclear deal and the subsequent tightening of secondary sanctions.

Viewed from New Delhi, the talks signal a readiness to re-engage but not a rush to buy. India’s petroleum minister, Hardeep Singh Puri, described the discussion as an exploration of opportunities, while the Ministry of External Affairs separately stressed that energy procurement remains a matter of national interest and supply diversification. Asian refiners, including those in Japan and South Korea, are adopting a similarly guarded stance. The 60-day window is widely considered too short to establish new payment mechanisms, shipping arrangements, and insurance cover, particularly given the risk that hostilities between Washington and Tehran could resume.

Iran’s oil minister, Mohsen Paknejad, used the BRICS platform to frame energy cooperation as a pillar of global stability. He told ministers that repeated attacks on Iranian oil, gas, refining and petrochemical infrastructure — which he termed a “third imposed war” — constituted a threat to international energy security, causing supply disruptions and price volatility. Paknejad cited Iran’s current production capacity of 4.2 million barrels per day and its extensive pipeline network, and proposed a “BRICS Energy Security Partnership” to deepen collaboration across oil, gas, renewables and digitalisation.

For now, China remains Iran’s only major crude customer, with independent refineries importing roughly 1.58 million barrels per day in the first five months of the year. The interim US-Iran deal has raised expectations of cheaper barrels for Asian economies, but the practical hurdles of compliance and the waiver’s brevity mean any significant flow to India or other former buyers will depend on the durability of the diplomatic track. The next milestone is the expiry of the 60-day waiver, which will test whether the two sides can convert a temporary truce into a lasting agreement that gives commercial actors the predictability they require.