NEW DELHI: External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Monday met with Iranian President Hassan Rouhani and apprised him of the outcomes of the Joint Commission and progress in the bilateral ties.
Jaishankar, who is here on a two-day visit, co-chaired the 19th Joint Commission Meeting with his Iranian counterpart Javad Zarif during which the two sides agreed to accelerate work on the strategic Chabahar project.
“Thank President Dr. @HassanRouhani for so graciously receiving me today. Apprised him of the outcomes of the Joint Commission and progress in our bilateral ties,” Jaishankar tweeted.
The Chabahar port — jointly being developed by India, Iran and Afghanistan — is considered a gateway to golden opportunities for trade with central Asian nations by the three countries. It is located on the Indian Ocean in the Sistan and Baluchistan province of Iran.
Jaishankar also met Admiral Ali Shamkhani, Secretary of the Supreme National Security Council of Iran, and held wide-ranging discussions with him on regional security and bilateral relations.
He also met Roads and Urban Development Minister Mohammad Eslami to assess progress on the connectivity projects. “Reaffirmed our shared determination to make speedier headway,” he tweeted.
His visit to Iran comes days after the US provided a rare exemption to India from sanctions on the Chabahar port as Washington said it recognised that the strategic project was a lifeline for war-torn Afghanistan to get humanitarian supplies from India.
With PTI inputs