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PM Modi, Iran Prez Raisi discuss ties, Chabahar port, Brics expansion
Modi and Raisi’s phone conversation comes ahead of their in-person meeting on the margins of the Brics (Brazil-Russia-India-China-South Africa) Summit in Johannesburg during August 22-24
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Iran President Seyyed Ebrahim Raisi on Friday reiterated their commitment to bolstering bilateral cooperation and realising the full potential of Chabahar port as a connectivity hub.
These issues figured in a phone conversation between the two leaders ahead of an in-person meeting on the margins of the Brics (Brazil-Russia-India-China-South Africa) Summit in Johannesburg during August 22-24. Iran is among the guest countries invited to the Brics Summit by host South Africa.
Iran is among some 40 countries that are reportedly interested in joining Brics and the expansion of the grouping also figured in the conversation between Modi and Raisi, according to an Indian readout.
The two leaders discussed matters of bilateral and regional importance, the readout said. They “reiterated their commitment to further strengthen bilateral cooperation including to realise the full potential of Chabahar port as a connectivity hub”, it said without giving details.
The two leaders also discussed cooperation at multilateral forums, including expansion of Brics, and looked forward to their meeting on the margins of forthcoming Brics Summit in South Africa, the readout said.
Modi said the India-Iran relationship is “underpinned by close historic and civilisational connections”, including strong people-to-people contacts.
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The two leaders met for the first time on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Summit in Samarkand in September 2022 and discussed ways to boost cooperation in energy, commerce and regional connectivity. They had also reviewed progress in the development of Chabahar port.
In 2016, India, Iran and Afghanistan had signed an agreement to develop Chabahar port as a trade and transit hub. An Indian state-run company has taken over operations at Shahid Beheshti terminal at the port though work on the project has been affected by US sanctions on Iran and the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan.
The Indian government made an outlay of ₹100 crore for Chahbahar port in its 2023-24 budget, the same level as the allocation in the past two fiscal years. This reflected the focus on connectivity projects, including the International North-South Transport Corridor.
India had earlier committed grant aid of $85 million and a credit facility of $150 million for developing Shahid Beheshti terminal, for which the US granted a special waiver from sanctions imposed on Iran.
