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PM Modi backs investment in Iran’s Chabahar port: Indian official
Secretary for East in the Ministry of External Affairs of India Jaideep Mazumdar highlighted the port’s growing potential for improving connectivity to Afghanistan and Central Asia in recent years.
“As the Trump administration threatens to roll back the sanction waiver that allowed India to develop the strategic Chabahar port in Iran, the Indian government strongly backed the port, saying it has provided a much-needed alternative route to Afghanistan for its reconstruction and economic development, while boosting trade linkages with Central Asia,” Mazumdar was quoted as saying by Times of India.
The remarks came ahead of Modi’s planned visit to the United States to meet US President Donald Trump for discussions focusing on averting a potentially devastating trade war between the two allies.
Recently, Trump signed an order directing the secretary of state to consider modifying or rescinding sanctions waivers related to Chabahar port.
In January, Iran and India exchanged their views on the joint development of the Chabahar port and enhancing trade and economic ties as they discussed potential cooperation in agriculture and other sectors.
The 19th India-Iran Foreign Office Consultations took place in Delhi in early-January where Iran urged India to consider resuming Iranian crude oil imports after the latter halted the imports in mid-2019 due to US sanctions on Tehran.
Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister Majid Takht-Ravanchi said on January 3 that the relations between Iran and India are traditional and historical.
“This afternoon in New Delhi, I participated in the 19th Iran-India Political Consultations. We discussed bilateral, regional and international issues with Mr. [Shri Vikram] Misri, the Foreign Secretary of India,” Takht-Ravanchi wrote on his X account.
“Economic relations, including Chabahar port, were prominent in the negotiations,” he stated.
The senior diplomat said he also had a useful meeting with India’s Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar.