Sushma Swaraj on 4-day visit to Iran, Russia

External affairs minister Sushma Swaraj on a line of travel oftwo-nation (Moscow, Iran) visit, during which she will be present at the annual foreign ministers meeting of Russia, India and China.

Iran’s Visit:

The Foreign Minister’s Iran visit is aimed at stepping up commitment in a range of areas including oil and trade as the strategically important Persian Gulf nation is now ready to resume business as usual after lifting of sanctions under a historic nuclear deal.

• After P5 nations sanctions against Iran, India has been eying deeper energy ties with that country and has already lined up 20 billion US dollar as investment in oil and gas also in petrochemical and fertilizer projects in Iran.
• In the Iranian Capital Tehran she will hold extensive talks with her counterpart Mohammad Javad Zarif.
• She also met Iran President Rouhani who has assured that his country can be a reliable partner for India’s energy needs. Improving energy support was the centerpiece of her visit to the powerful Persian Gulf nation.

Moscow’s Visit:

After Iran she will leave for a two-day trip to Moscow to attend the annual Foreign Ministers’ meeting of Russia, India and China.On the sidelines of event Swaraj is expected to meet her Chinese counterpart Wang Yi during which she is likely to raise the issue of China blocking India’s bid to ban Jaish-e-Mohammad chief Masood Azhar by the UN.

Finalisation of Trilateral Chabahar Agreement

In the second meeting from India, Afghanistan and Iran was held in New Delhi to make a call on the text of the Trilateral Agreement among the three countries on Transport and Transit Corridors (Chabahar Agreement).

Chabahar Agreement:

• The agreement emphasizes a trilateral cooperation for providing alternative access to seas to Afghanistan, inter alia for Afghanistan’s trade with India.
• It will considerably improve utilization of Chabahar Port, back to economic growth of Afghanistan, and facilitate better regional connectivity, including between India and connections to Afghanistan and Central Asia.
• This will be a strategic fortification for greater flow of people and goods among the three countries as well as in the region.

Port of Chabahar: 

• The port is a sea port in ChahBahar in Iran. Its location lies in the Gulf of Oman. It is the only Iranian port with direct access to the ocean.
• The port was in part built by India in the 1990s to make available access to Afghanistan and Central Asia, bypassing Pakistan.