Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Iranian President Hassan Rouhani will hold a meeting on February 17th. The President of Iran will be on his maiden visit to India from 15th to 17th February since he came to power in 2013 August. According to a press release by Ministry of Foreign Affairs the meeting is expected to strengthen the relationship between the two countries further. Mr. Hassan Rouhani is expected to visit India on Thursday to discuss various issues regarding latest global and regional issues. Prime Minister Narendra Modi had visited Iran in 2016 to develop the Chabahar port for using it for military purposes and to boost the relationship between both countries. The visit also marked the first visit by an Indian Prime Minister to Iran in more than fifteen years.
This visit by the Iranian President is considered to be very important as only last year in December, the construction at the Chabahar port had started which is the very important strategic location for Indian Army. The port is also important economically as it allows India’s goods and services to reach Afghanistan and Iran as Pakistan does not allows India to use its ports. The Chabahar port is important as it is the answer of India to China which is spending a good fortune in the development of Gwadar port in Pakistan. The Chabahar port will allow India to bypass Pakistan and it will open new routes for Indian goods to reach Central Asian markets more easily and it is also an answer to the aggressive Chinese pursuit of Belt and Road initiative.
India imports Iranian oil and gas for its domestic use and this makes it one of the largest purchaser of Iran’s produce. The trade continued between India and Iran even when there were sanctions imposed on Iran due to its nuclear programme for four years since 2012 to 2916. It is not that the relationship is all smooth between the two countries, there have been tensions as well as the local media in India had been showing the frustration over the delay in awarding a contract to develop a major gas field in the Persian Gulf. The delays in the construction of Farzad B led to New Delhi reducing its amount of oil it imports from Iran in 2017 March.
President Rouhani said that the inauguration was a historic moment for the people of both countries and the project was very important as it connected the various trade corridors that pass to Iran via sea routes. Mr. Rouhani said that the Chabahar port was the very important strategic location as it serves in connecting Iran with its northern and eastern neighbors and also to Europe.
Foreign Minister Sushma Swaraj held a meeting with her counterpart Javad Zarif when she was returning from Russia last December. They discussed the issued of mutual interest beneficial for both countries during the meeting. The External Affairs Minister was returning from the annual summit of Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) when she stopped for a luncheon meeting. The Chabahar port is an important strategic location for both India and Iran.
