NEW DELHI: Commerce and industry minister Piyush Goyal has held talks with his counterparts from the UAE, Kuwait and Bahrain as well as the Gulf Cooperation Council and assured India’s support in addressing supply chain challenges, especially food. During his calls, he underlined the need to maintain peace in the region that has come under attack from Iran, which hit countries for their perceived proximity to the US. Given the large Indian diaspora in the Gulf region, the minister also expressed govt’s appreciation for the support extended to them during the crisis. “The UAE’s proactive logistics measures”, including the opening of alternate routes and multi-modal transport, also came up for discussion during the minister’s call with his counterpart Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi as Dubai Ports accounts for nearly a quarter of the global goods trade from India, which has been disrupted since Iran blocked the Strait of Hormuz in response to the US-Israel attack on Tehran. The countries in the region are a key source of energy and a major market for Indian goods and services.