Jaishankar, French counterpart discuss Iran, Hormuz at G7 meet

External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar arrived in France on a two-day visit to represent India as a partner country at the Foreign Ministers’ Meeting of the G7 (Group of Seven) advanced economies. The Minister held bilateral talks with his French counterpart Jean-Noël Barrot in Abbaye des-Vaux-de-Cernay on Thursday (March 26, 2026), which included an “in depth” discussion on West Asia as per the French government’s readout of the meeting.

The two Ministers “agreed to continue their close coordination with a view to working jointly towards ensuring the security of the Strait of Hormuz,” the readout said. The meeting comes just after Israel claimed to have killed Iranian commander Alireza Tangsiri, who Israel said was directly responsible for the closing of the Strait.

The participation of Mr. Jaishankar in the G7 meetings signified “the importance France attaches to closely associating India — currently holding the BRICS presidency — with its G7 presidency”, the French government said.

The Ministers welcomed Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s participation in the G7 Summit, scheduled for June 15-17 in Évian, France and underscored India’s contribution to the G7’s work on addressing major macroeconomic imbalances and improving international partnerships, as per the readout.

#### Global energy issues

Front and centre of the G7 agenda this week is the war in Iran and its impact on global energy and stock markets. Discussions on the Russia-Ukraine war and the reform of multilateralism are also on the cards.

“We will work to bring about a new international order and to build a more balanced and fairer system, underpinned by a renewed multilateralism. Reforming global governance and combatting cross-cutting threats require a collective commitment which extends beyond G7 members alone,” Mr. Barrot said in a statement.

The first session on Thursday (March 26, 2026), on reforming global governance, involved G7 partner countries India, South Korea, Brazil and Saudi Arabia. The Foreign Minister of Ukraine, Andrii Sybiha, was also invited as was the European Union’s top diplomat Kaja Kallas and European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) President Odile Renaud-Basso.

At the session on global governance, Mr. Jaishankar emphasised the urgency of UN Security Council reforms. India and several other countries have been seeking a permanent seat on the body.

The Minister also raised energy challenges and concerns around fertilizer supplies and food security impacting the Global South.

#### Sessions on Iran, Ukraine

Friday’s (March 27, 2026) session on Iran will only be for G7 countries and the session on Ukraine will be in the G7 and Ukraine format.

The Iran session will discuss negotiations around the war in West Asia, the safety of civilians, the opening of maritime and trade routes and the cessation of Iran’s nuclear and ballistic missile programmes as per an agenda document.

There is also a G7 and EU discussion on “peace and security” that will include discussions on Iran, West Asia, crises in Cuba, Venezuela and Ukraine.

#### Bilateral meetings

Mr. Jaishankar also met bilaterally with the Foreign Ministers of Canada, Japan and South Korea. With Canadian Foreign Minister Anita Anand , talks focused on advancing the bilateral agenda and discussed developments in West Asia, Mr. Jaishankar said on social media site X.

Published - March 26, 2026 11:41 am IST

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