New Delhi: As the world grapples with the Strait of Hormuz crisis, Congress leader Jairam Ramesh on Tuesday drew parallels with the 1956 Suez Canal crisis and highlighted how India’s then UN envoy VK Krishna Menon played a central role in diplomatic efforts to resolve it.Menon later served as the Defense Minister of India but resigned after the defeat in the 1962 China War.“The world is grappling with the Strait of Hormuz crisis. Seventy years ago, it was known as the Suez crisis,” Ramesh posted on Twitter.He further said, “On July 26, 1956, Egyptian President Nasser nationalized the Suez Canal. This caused a huge uproar in the West and the clouds of war loomed. The man at the center of the diplomatic effort to resolve the crisis was none other than VK Krishna Menon. He succeeded admirably, but only for a short while.”Ramesh recalled that on October 29, Britain, France and Israel launched an invasion of Egypt, which had to be aborted within days after the intervention of “irate” US President Dwight Eisenhower.“The irony is that this is the same man who three years ago approved the joint US-UK operation to overthrow Iran’s democratically elected Prime Minister Mohammad Mosaddegh, who nationalized the oil industry there,” the Rajya Sabha MP said, referring to Eisenhower.After stopping the Egyptian offensive, the United Nations Emergency Force remained deployed on the Sinai and Gaza borders until early June 1967. “This force, drawn from ten countries including India, was active until 1967. Its commander from December 1959 to January 1964 was Lieutenant General PS Giani, and from January 1966 to June 1967 it was led by Major General Inder Jeet Ricky.”He further informed that Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru himself had addressed the Indian contingent on Gaza Strip on May 20, 1960. The Six Day War began immediately after the departure of the UN emergency force.Ramesh also shared photographs of Menon with Nasser, Antony Eden and Selwyn Lloyd during their busy diplomatic efforts.These memories come when the world is grappling with the Strait of Hormuz crisis. Amid fears of a global energy crisis, only a few ships have passed through the vital waterway, through which 20% of the world’s oil typically travels. Iranian attacks on commercial vessels have slowed shipping, causing oil prices to rise sharply and putting pressure on Washington to take action to ease the strain on consumers and the global economy.Iran has effectively blocked the waterway in response to the US-Israeli attacks, triggering the current Middle East crisis.