India and Iran are set to advance their collaboration on developing the strategic port of Chabahar following talks between Ali Shamkhani, Tehran's security Czar and India's National Security Advisor, Ajit Doval in New Delhi on Wednesday.
The dialogue on Chabahar – a deep water Iranian port in the Indian Ocean – added to the substantial discussions held between the two on Afghanistan's security at a major international security dialogue that concluded in the Indian capital on November 10.
The 66-year-old Rear Admiral, who had commanded Iran's Revolutionary Guards Navy during the long war with Iraq, had also called on Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
India has over the past five years taken practical steps to operationalize the port in Iran's Sistan-Baluchestan province which is located strategically near the waters of the Sea of Oman and the Indian Ocean and is the closest way for the land-locked countries of Central Asia to reach international waters.
New Delhi is also pushing for Chabahar port's integration with the International North South Transport Corridor (INSTC) – a 7200-kilometre multimodal ship, rail and road-based transport network starting from Mumbai which would head to Moscow via Iran and the Caspian Sea.
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Shamkhani on Wednesday once again highlighted the importance of Chabahar in regional relations and the north-south transit route.
"One of the most important issues between the two countries is to accelerate the full operation of Chabahar port and the Islamic Republic of Iran wants to use its capacities for the development and growth of the region and strong bilateral relations with India can pave the way in this direction," said Iran's security chief.
India, as emphasised by PM Modi during his address at the meeting of SCO Council of Heads of State in September, is working hard to restore the traditional connectivity of the region through such projects and "is ready to make any contribution" from its side.
"We believe that land-locked Central Asian countries can benefit immensely by connecting with India's vast market. Unfortunately, many connectivity options are not open to them today due to lack of mutual trust. Our investment in Iran's Chabahar port and our efforts towards the International North-South Corridor are driven by this reality," the PM had commented.
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As Chabahar emerged as a commercial transit hub for the region and also facilitated the delivery of humanitarian assistance, especially during the Covid-19 pandemic, India had welcomed the formation of India-Uzbekistan-Iran-Afghanistan Quadrilateral Working Group on the joint use of the port.
"Its efficacy is now clearly proven," External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar had remarked earlier this year while stressing that India's focus in the last few years has been to rebuild links that were diminished by the colonial period.
Shamkhani, the Iranian media reported today, emphasised on increasing cooperation with India in three areas – international, regional and bilateral – expanding Tehran-New Delhi relations in scientific, technical, security and transit capacity.
"Ajit Doval also stressed the importance of bilateral relations with Iran and stressed the need to expand cooperation, especially in the economic and security fields," reported Tehran's Mehr News Agency.
