Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived in Abu Dhabi on Friday, the first stop on a five-nation tour meant to lock in energy supplies and calm jittery trade routes. The trip comes as the war in Iran has tightened global oil markets and forced ships to reroute around Africa’s Cape of Good Hope, adding weeks to voyages from Europe to Asia. That’s pushed up India’s fuel costs and risks delaying imports just as the country’s economy keeps growing fast.

In Abu Dhabi, Modi will meet Crown Prince Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan to finalize long-term deals for crude oil and liquefied natural gas. The UAE is India’s third-biggest oil supplier, and officials expect a new 10-year supply pact that could add 200,000 barrels a day to India’s intake. India needs every drop after Iran cut shipments by nearly a third since April, when Israeli strikes on Iranian nuclear sites set off months of tit-for-tat attacks on oil tankers in the Gulf.

Europe’s hunt for alternatives to Russian gas

From the UAE, Modi flies to Europe to sell India as a stable buyer for gas and a partner in clean energy. In Vienna, he’ll meet Austrian Chancellor Karl Nehammer and Energy Minister Leonore Gewessler to discuss long-term LNG contracts. Austria, a landlocked country, relies on pipelines from Germany and imports from the Netherlands—both of which are also on Modi’s itinerary. Europe wants to cut its last ties to Russian gas after Moscow cut flows to punish the West for backing Ukraine, and India’s spare refining capacity makes it a useful middleman.

Germany’s economy minister Robert Habeck confirmed talks on hydrogen and green ammonia, two fuels India is betting big on to replace coal. Dutch Prime Minister Dick Schoof will push for faster customs clearances on Indian pharmaceuticals and tech exports—sectors where the Netherlands is a key gateway into the EU. Both sides hope to sign at least five new trade pacts by the time Modi lands back in Delhi.

Shipping chaos hits India’s factories and Europe’s shelves

The real deadline isn’t just these meetings—it’s the ships stuck sailing around Africa because Iran-backed Houthi rebels keep attacking vessels in the Red Sea. India imports 60% of its oil through that route, and the detours have added $4 to every barrel India buys. Factories in Gujarat and Maharashtra already report delays on parts from Europe, forcing some to idle workers for a week at a time. Europe’s ports are seeing the same squeeze: Rotterdam’s container traffic is down 7% this quarter as ships avoid the Suez Canal.

Modi’s team insists the tour will ease those bottlenecks by giving Indian refiners direct access to UAE gas and Europe-bound cargo more predictable lanes. But traders in Mumbai and Antwerp aren’t fully convinced yet. One Mumbai oil trader said, “A handshake with Abu Dhabi won’t stop a missile in the Strait of Hormuz.” Still, if the deals go through, India could shave $2 billion off its annual fuel bill and Europe might finally loosen its grip on Russian gas.

What comes next

Modi wraps up the tour in the Netherlands on Tuesday before flying home. In Delhi, his cabinet will review whether the new energy pacts cover enough volume to offset the Iran shortfall. Meanwhile, European buyers will send delegations to Mumbai next month to inspect India’s new green hydrogen pilot plants outside Pune. If those plants scale up, they could become Europe’s fallback source for low-carbon fuel by 2026.

The bigger gamble is whether the Iran war cools down by then. Until it does, every handshake in Abu Dhabi or handshake in Vienna is just a temporary fix for a market on edge.

What You Need to Know

  • Source: RFI
  • Published: May 15, 2026 at 01:30 UTC
  • Category: World
  • Topics: #rfi · #france · #world-news · #war · #conflict · #indian

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Curated by GlobalBR News · May 15, 2026

🇧🇷 Resumo em Português

O primeiro-ministro indiano, Narendra Modi, inicia esta semana uma turnê de cinco nações com um objetivo claro: blindar o fornecimento de energia e garantir rotas comerciais alternativas em meio ao temor de um conflito prolongado no Oriente Médio que poderia estrangular as cadeias globais de suprimentos. Sua agenda inclui paradas estratégicas nos Emirados Árabes Unidos e em países europeus, onde buscará fechar acordos que minimizem os riscos de desabastecimento de petróleo e gás — commodities vitais para a Índia e, indiretamente, para o Brasil, país que também depende de importações energéticas e enfrenta desafios semelhantes em sua balança comercial.

O contexto é especialmente sensível para o Brasil, que, como a Índia, depende fortemente de importações de energia e mantém relações comerciais intensas com o Oriente Médio e a Europa. A recente escalada de tensões na região, com a guerra em Gaza e os riscos de um conflito mais amplo envolvendo o Irã, acendeu um sinal de alerta em Brasília, que tem buscado diversificar suas fontes de energia e parceiros comerciais. Para especialistas, a ofensiva diplomática de Modi pode servir como um termômetro para as estratégias que outros países emergentes, como o Brasil, também precisarão adotar para proteger suas economias de choques externos — seja na área energética, seja na logística global.

A viagem de Modi deve servir como um alerta para o Brasil repensar sua própria política externa, especialmente em um cenário onde a segurança das rotas marítimas e a estabilidade dos preços de commodities estão cada vez mais ameaçadas.

🇪🇸 Resumen en Español

El primer ministro indio, Narendra Modi, inicia esta semana una gira por cinco países con un doble objetivo: blindar su suministro energético y blindar sus rutas comerciales en medio del temor a un conflicto en Oriente Medio que desestabilice el flujo de petróleo.

La visita a Emiratos Árabes Unidos y varios países europeos no es casual: India, dependiente en un 80% del petróleo importado, busca alternativas a las rutas tradicionales que podrían verse afectadas por la escalada bélica en la región, especialmente si el conflicto en Gaza se extiende al estrecho de Ormuz. Además, Modi intenta impulsar acuerdos comerciales que reduzcan su vulnerabilidad frente a las sanciones internacionales, como las que ya pesan sobre Irán, un histórico proveedor para Nueva Delhi. Para los hispanohablantes, este movimiento refleja una estrategia global en la que Latinoamérica, aunque no esté en el itinerario, no puede ignorar: en un mundo cada vez más fragmentado, las potencias buscan alianzas diversificadas que garanticen su seguridad económica, algo que también afecta a nuestras economías dependientes de exportaciones y materias primas.