Following the United States’ announcement that Indian companies involved in the project could face penalties, India’s foreign minister stated that his organization will endeavor to convey the advantages of the strategic port project in Iran.
This Monday, Iran and India inked a deal to equip and expand the long-stalled Chabahar port. New Delhi will have ten years to use the facility during this time, which coincides with the government’s efforts to increase trade in west and central Asia.
Although Washington maintains cordial relations with India, its long-standing antagonistic relationship with Iran has been further strained by Tehran’s backing of Hamas in its conflict with Israel.
“It’s a question of communicating and convincing and getting people to understand that this is actually for everybody’s benefit,” Indian foreign minister S. Jaishankar said at a public event in the city of Kolkata on Tuesday evening.
“If you look at the US’s own attitude to Chabahar in the past, the US has been appreciative of the fact that Chabahar has a larger relevance,” he added.
While US forces were in Afghanistan, the US reluctantly approved the port project because it considered New Delhi as a crucial ally in supporting the Kabul administration that fell in 2021.
However, the Indian companies involved in the initiative ran the danger of US penalties, the State Department warned on Monday.
“Any entity anyone concerned with business deals with Iran, they need to be aware of the potential risks that they’re opening themselves up to,” State Department spokesman Vedant Patel told a press briefing then.
According to the agreement signed this week, India Ports Global Limited (IPGL) would spend $370 million over the next ten years “developing the port’s transport infrastructure” and “providing strategic equipment”.
In order to establish the Iranian port as a commerce hub for central Asia, India committed to support its development in 2016.
Following Jaishankar’s visit to Tehran in 2019, both governments decided to expedite the project prior to the Covid-19 epidemic.
Approximately 100 kilometers (62 miles) west of the Pakistani border is the Indian Ocean port of Chabahar. China is assisting Pakistan, India’s longtime foe, in the development of its Gwadar port.
