Four years after India and Iran signed a deal to construct a rail line from Chabahar port to Zahedan, Tehran has decided to proceed with the project by itself citing delays from New Delhi. According to Indian publication The Hindu, the country will now use around $400 million from the Iranian National Development Fund, instead of relying on financial assistance from India. The railways project, which will be completed by March 2022, witnessed the inauguration of its track laying process by Iranian Transport Minister Mohammad Eslami last week. The railway project, which was being discussed between the Iranian Railways and the state owned Indian Railways Construction Ltd (IRCON), was meant to be part of India’s commitment to the trilateral agreement between India, Iran and Afghanistan to build an alternative trade route to Afghanistan and Central Asia. In May 2016, during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Tehran to sign the Chabahar agreement with Iranian President Hassan Rouhani and Afghan President Ashraf Ghani. The blow to India comes in the backdrop of China finalising a huge $400 billion strategic partnership deal with Iran. From the Indian perspective growing Iran China relationship is a reason for worry and changing strategic landscape. India’s relations with Iran cooled off substantially after India agreed to reduce its trade relations with Iran after imposition of sanctions. The visit of President Trump and increasing Indo-US economic and strategic partnership seems to have been the last straw. It is unlikely that relations with Iran would improve in the near term.
Afia Ambreen
Rawalpindi
