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The Economic Times reported on Monday that Iran and India signed a bilateral deal to further develop the Chabahar Port, establishing a “long-term cooperation framework” for the vital marine facility on Iran’s southeastern coast.
S Jaishankar, India’s external affairs minister, is on a two-day visit to Iran as part of ongoing high-level exchanges between the two countries. He met with Mehrdad Bazrpash, Iran’s minister of roads and urban development, to discuss the International North-South Transport Corridor.
The new long-term agreement will replace the current one, which has been extended year after year and only covers India’s operations at the Chabahar Port’s Shahid Beheshti terminal. The freshly signed agreement will be effective for ten years and automatically extended.
The first phase of Chabahar Port was developed and launched by then-President Hassan Rouhani in 2017. New Delhi has made a significant investment in the facility, which lets Indian commodities to circumvent Pakistan and reach landlocked Afghanistan and Central Asian countries.
“Detailed and productive discussion on establishing a long-term cooperation framework with respect to Chabahar port. Also exchanged views on the International North-South Transport Corridor,” Jaishankar posted on X.
The INSTC, which passes through Chabahar Port, is primarily used for moving goods from India, Iran, Azerbaijan, and Russia, by sea, rail, and road. The route is seen as an attempt by New Delhi to create an alternative to China’s Belt and Road Initiative.
