Kabul, August 9 - Neftegaz.RU. Afghan officials said they are hopeful that US President Donald Trump’s move to reinstate sanctions against Iran will not affect the section of Chabahar Port in Iran that links land-locked Afghanistan to India.
Chabahar Port is a key trade port, providing Afghanistan with direct sea access. According to President Ashraf Ghani’s spokesman, a series of discussions have been held over the past few months with Iranian and Indian officials.
He said talks are ongoing regarding the possibility of a waiver against the US’s sanctions on the section of Chabahar Port that will directly connect India with Afghanistan.
«Chabahar Port is of great significance to the Afghan government. The Afghan, Indian and Iranian governments have held several meetings over the past few months about Chabahar and work is ongoing regarding a specific plan and proposal to make sure that at least that section of the port, which is shared by these countries, is not affected by US sanctions against Iran. There is some optimism around this,» said the spokesman.
In February this year, Iran said it had agreed to lease operational control of Chabahar to India for 18 months and in June, India’s Union Minister Nitin Gadkari said India is trying to make Chabahar fully operational by 2019.
However, officials are optimistic about the future of the port – especially after the US on August 7 granted a waiver - for the Azerbaijan natural gas pipeline.
