The Indian Ministry of External Affairs said Chabahar was an “important project” for India. New Delhi has been developing Chabahar Port in Iran, which has provided it with connectivity to Afghanistan through the seas bypassing Pakistan, Indian daily The Asian Age reported on Friday.
The comments were made in response to Iranian Deputy Ambassador and Charge d’Affaires Masoud Rezvanian Rahaqi’s Wednesday criticism that India was not fulfilling its promise of making investments on expansion of Chabahar.
“It is unfortunate that Indian investment promises for expansion of Chabahar Port and its connectivity projects have not been accomplished so far. It is expected that India takes immediate, necessary measures in this regard if its cooperation and engagement in Chabahar Port is of strategic nature,” Financial Tribune quoted him as saying.
In May 2016, India, Iran and Afghanistan had signed a pact that entailed the establishment of Transit and Transport Corridor among the three countries using Chabahar Port as one of the regional hubs for sea transportation in Iran, besides the multimodal transport of goods and passengers across the three nations.
In February, Iran said it had agreed to lease operational control of Chabahar, located on the Sea of Oman, to India for 18 months.
Indian Union Minister Nitin Gadkari said in June that India is trying to make Chabahar operational by 2019.