On Sanction Warning From US Over India-Iran Chabahar Deal, S Jaishankar's 'Narrow View' Remark

India has sealed a 10-year deal with Iran for the development and operations of the Chabahar port. Soon after the deal, the United States warned that the deal could invite sanctions. However, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said that the project will benefit all in the region. Jaishankar said that those criticising the project should not take a 'narrow view' of it.

"I did see some remarks which were made, but it's a question of communicating, convincing and getting people to understand that this is actually for everybody's benefit. I dont think people should take a narrow view of it, and they have not done so in the past. If you look at even US' own attitude to Chabahar in the past, the US has been appreciative of the fact that Chabahar has a larger relevance. So we will work at it," said Jaishankar.

Jaishankar further said that India had a long association with the project, but was not able to sign a long-term pact, which was important. He added that New Delhi was able to sort out the issues and sign the long-term agreement, which will benefit the entire region.

The United States warned on Tuesday that 'anyone' considering business deals with Tehran needs to be aware of the 'potential risk of sanctions'. US State Department Principal Deputy Spokesperson, Vedant Patel said at a press briefing that US sanctions on Iran remain in place and the US will continue to enforce them.

"Any entity, anyone considering business deals with Iran, they need to be aware of the potential risk they are opening themselves up to, potential risk of sanctions," he said.

Indian Ports Global Limited (IPGL) of India and the Port & Maritime Organisation (PMO) of Iran on Monday signed the Long-Term Bilateral Contract on Chabahar Port Operation, enabling the operation of Shahid-Behesti port in the Chabahar Port Development Project for 10 years.