Iran, Afghan to sign trilateral port deal involving India

Tehran, May 18:

The Afghan president will arrive in Tehran to sign a trilateral deal on Iran’s Chabahar Port, semi-official Mehr news agency reported on Wednesday.

Afghan President Ashraf Ghani made his first visit to Iran in March, 2015, when the two countries stressed cooperation in executing bilateral and multilateral projects with regional countries, particularly with India, to develop Chabahar port.

Under the agreement which was finalized in April, India will be allowed access to Afghanistan via the strategically located Iranian port of Chabahar, which sits on the Gulf of Oman.

The Chabahar route to Afghanistan will allow Indian goods to reach Afghanistan without crossing Pakistan territory.

India says the agreement will be a strategic bulwark for greater flow of people and goods among the three countries, as well as in the region.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi will make an official visit to Iran on May 22 in a bid to spruce up bilateral ties with the Islamic republic. (IANS)