The Chabahar Port has emerged as a silver lining for Iran as it is located at an ideal strategic location, connecting the Indian subcontinent with both Afghanistan as well as Central Asian countries such as Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan, to emerge as a hub of regional trade through promoting maritime trading operations.
Since the Ebrahim Raisi administration took over, Iran’s policy has been a “Pivot to the East,” reported policy research group, Poreg. Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Khomeini, has succinctly put Iran’s policy thus: “We are preferring the East to the West and neighbouring countries to remote ones.” Iran acceded to the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) after 15 years as an observer, a Eurasian regional body on September 16, 2022—a diplomatic triumph for Iran.
Besides playing a key role in the International North-South Transport Corridor (INSTC) as an economic hub, Iran provides SCO members with secure and stable transport routes and is committed to further infrastructure development, particularly at the strategically important Chabahar Port.
It is against this backdrop that the June 10 announcement by Hossein Amir-Abdollahian that India and Iran had agreed upon further investments in the Chabahar Port becomes significant. Both countries have also agreed upon banking mechanisms for the facilitation of trade. Trade in Indian Rupees is also on the agenda, reported Poreg.