Driven by US sanctions, parts of Chabahar port deal made confidential
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Chabahar port is on the Indian Ocean about 100 kilometers (62 miles) west of the Pakistan border.
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A cargo ship is docked during the inauguration ceremony of the newly built extension in the port of Chabahar on the Gulf of Oman, southeastern Iran, near the Pakistani border, Sunday, December 3, 2017. (AP)
The head of Iran’s Ports and Maritime Organization Ali Akbar Safaei stated, on Saturday, that certain sections of a new agreement with India to develop the Chabahar port in southeastern Iran have been rendered confidential to prevent issues arising from US sanctions.
“The contract with the Indian operator is not confidential but we have made some of its aspects confidential,” Safaei told the semi-official ILNA news agency.
Safaei made these remarks shortly after a press conference in which he declined to reveal details about the Indian operator's future activities at Chabahar.
He noted that disclosing contract details could put India under US pressure.
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After Iran and India inked a 10-year agreement regarding the operation of the Chabahar Port, the US Department of State's Deputy Spokesperson Vedant Patel warned in May of sanctions against India if New Delhi moves forward with the Chabahar port deal with Iran.
At the time, Patel said, "So we’re aware of these reports that Iran and India have signed a deal concerning the Chabahar port," adding, "I will just say, as it relates to the United States, US sanctions on Iran remain in place and we’ll continue to enforce them."
It is worth noting that Patel further stressed that "any entity, anyone considering business deals with Iran, they need to be aware of the potential risk that they are opening themselves up to and the potential risk of sanctions."
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In May, Iran and India signed an agreement allowing India Ports Global (IPGL) to develop and manage Chabahar for a decade. Located on Iran's coast along the Sea of Oman, Chabahar is Iran’s sole ocean port and serves as a crucial trade route connecting the Indian Ocean with Afghanistan and landlocked Central Asian countries.
It is worth noting that India aims to develop Chabahar as a competitor to the Chinese-funded Gwadar and Karachi ports in Pakistan. Under a previous agreement, India Ports Global (IPGL) invested $85 million in gantry cranes at Chabahar, with a total planned investment of $250 million. The new agreement has increased the Indian investment to $370 million. Meanwhile, Iran plans to develop additional terminals at Chabahar and has invested heavily in constructing a railway connecting the port to Zahedan, the provincial capital near the Afghan border.
