ISLAMABAD: Former president of Azad Jammu and Kashmir and senior diplomat Sardar Masood Khan has said that the US decision to withdraw India’s exemption from Chabahar port is another big setback for India.
Sardar Masood Khan in a media interview said that, on the one hand, India was a strategic partner of the US, while, on the other, it was trading oil and other goods with anti-American countries.
He said this ban is not only likely to sink India’s huge investment but also the dream of reaching Afghanistan and Central Asia through this port by bypassing Pakistan will remain a dream.
He said US President Donald Trump’s executive order clearly states that this ban will not only apply to Iran’s Chabahar port but will also apply to those who manage and supervise this port.
Currently, the operational responsibilities of Chabahar Port are being fulfilled by India’s Ports Global Limited, which is under the Ministry of Ports and Shipping of India.
Sardar Masood said that the port was started from the first day on the basis of bad intentions. He said that India had established a base for espionage and terrorism against Pakistan under the cover of this port.
He said during the recent Israel-Iran war, India also used this espionage base against Iran and the Iranian government also arrested Indian citizens connected to this espionage network.
India used this port like a double-edged sword against both Iran and Pakistan and is using this base of terrorism to carry out terrorist activities inside Pakistan, especially in Balochistan.
To a question about the decision of the US to increase the fee for H-1B visas to $100,000, Sardar Masood Khan said the aim of this move is also to punish India.
After the Trump administration came to power in the US, a large number of Indian citizens illegally residing in the US were expelled, which India never expected.
