Indian Ambassador to Iran Rudra Gaurav Shresth met with members of the Iran-India Chamber of Commerce on Friday to discuss opportunities for cooperation between companies of both countries.

The focus of the meeting was on leveraging synergies and complementarities to promote economic growth and development in both countries.

An important highlight of the discussion was the recently signed agreement regarding the port of Chahbahar.

The Chahbahar Port Agreement is expected to facilitate smoother trade routes between India, Iran and other countries in the region, thereby boosting economic activities and creating new avenues for investment.

“Ambassador Rudra Gaurav Shresth met with members of the Iran-India Chamber of Commerce and spoke about the potential to leverage complementarities between Indian and Iranian businesses. He also highlighted the recently signed Chahbahar Port Agreement and its potential to transform the region,” the Indian Embassy in Iran said in a post on X.

Chabahar Port is an Indo-Iranian flagship project and serves as a major transit port for trade with Afghanistan. India has been a key player in the development and operation of Chabahar Port.

India and Iran recently cemented their cooperation by signing a major long-term agreement to operate the Shahid-Beheshti port terminal. This landmark agreement, witnessed by ministers from both countries, underscores the strategic importance of the Chabahar port pact. By improving regional connectivity, the agreement is expected to optimize trade routes between India, Iran and Afghanistan and provide an alternative to the traditional routes that pass through Pakistan.

The long-term bilateral agreement to operate Chabahar Port was signed between India’s Indian Ports Global Limited (IPGL) and Iran’s Port & Maritime Organisation (PMO), enabling the operation of Shahid-Behesti under the Chabahar Port Development Project for a period of 10 years.

India and Iran share a history of interaction spanning thousands of years. The current relations between the two countries are characterized by high-level exchanges, trade cooperation, connectivity paradigm and cultural and people-to-people ties.