Iran seeks accelerated trade, investment with India at SCO summit
Iran’s Minister of Industry, Mine and Trade, Mohammad Atabek, called for accelerated economic and investment cooperation with India during a meeting with India’s Minister of Heavy Industries H.D. Kumaraswamy on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) industry ministers’ gathering in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan.
According to a statement from Iran’s Ministry of Industry, Mine and Trade, the two sides discussed ways to enhance bilateral cooperation and remove obstacles facing economic operators, pointing to the significant untapped potential in Iran-India economic relations.
India has committed about $370 million to develop and equip the strategic Chabahar Port, a project that provides New Delhi with critical access to Afghanistan and Central Asia. However, India's 2026-27 budget included no new allocation for the Chabahar project, a move analysts link to pressure from US sanctions.
India's ONGC Videsh has also in the past proposed an investment package of around $10 billion to develop the Farzad-B gas field and related LNG export facilities, though the project has not moved forward.
Atabak stressed the importance of strengthening mechanisms for joint cooperation and called for the early convening of the two countries' joint trade working group, describing it as an appropriate platform for following up on agreements, identifying new areas of cooperation and increasing the volume of economic exchanges.
The Iranian minister also underscored the need to facilitate the issuance of business visas for economic actors from both countries, saying easier travel for traders and investors could play an important role in expanding economic ties and increasing private-sector interaction.
The two sides also emphasized expanding direct flight connections between major cities in Iran and India, saying that increasing direct flights and achieving greater balance in bilateral air links could help promote tourism, facilitate business travel and expand economic and cultural cooperation.
They also agreed to continue consultations and strengthen cooperation across various economic and trade sectors while making maximum use of existing capacities to elevate the level of Iran-India relations.
Atabak, who is leading an official delegation at the SCO industry ministers' meeting in Bishkek, said on Friday that all industry ministers from the organization's member states were participating in this round of talks and that Iran had adopted an active approach focused on expanding relations and identifying shared opportunities and areas of cooperation with other members.
He also stressed the need to strengthen multilateral cooperation among independent countries and expressed hope that financial and economic exchanges among SCO members and other regional groupings that support multilateralism would increase further, creating conditions to reduce dependence on financial mechanisms under the influence of dominant powers.