India, April 20 -- At a moment when tensions in the Gulf are once again rising - marked by instability in the Strait of Hormuz and the stalling of US-Iran diplomacy - much of the analysis remains narrowly focused on familiar powers and traditional alliances. This framing misses a critical shift. India, long viewed as an external economic partner, is now becoming a consequential security stakeholder in West Asia. Not through military projection, but through something potentially more durable: Deep economic exposure, strategic interdependence and a growing capacity to shape the conditions for stability.

More than 60% of India's crude oil imports originate from West Asia. The uninterrupted flow of energy through the Strait of Hormuz is, the...