New Delhi, Jan 16 (.) India said today that it is in talks with the US over the sanctions waiver on Iran’s Chabahar Port, which is valid till April 26 this year.
Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal, answering a query on whether India is winding down its operations in Chabahar following fresh US sanctions, said:
“As you are aware, on 28 October 2025, the US Department of Treasury had issued a letter outlining the guidance on the conditional sanctions waiver valid till 26 April 2026. We remain engaged with the US side in working out this arrangement.”
His comments come amid the backdrop of US President Donald Trump announcing 25 percent US tariffs on “any country” maintaining trade ties with Iran. India is already grappling with 50 percent US tariffs, which includes 25 percent punitive duty slapped for its purchase of Russian oil.
In May 2024, India signed a 10-year contract with Iran granting New Delhi the right to develop, equip and operate the Shahid Beheshti terminal at Chabahar port. The contract was concluded between Indian Ports Global Ltd (IPGL) and Iran’s Ports and Maritime Organization (PMO). The Chabahar Port helps India connect with Afghanistan and beyond, bypassing Pakistan.
The 10-year contract involves $120 million for terminal equipment and a $250 million credit line for infrastructure development at Chabahar.
According to strategic expert Brahma Chellaney, India has been quietly exiting operations at Chabahar.
In a post on X, Chellaney wrote that “as the U.S. sanctions exemption related to Chabahar Port approaches its expiry in April, a compliant India is withdrawing from the Indian-operated port, which is a strategic counter to Pakistan’s Chinese-run Gwadar Port.”
He says that in September last year, the “U.S. gratuitously withdrew the Chabahar-specific sanctions exemption it had first granted India in 2018. The following month, Washington issued a temporary six-month waiver — not to protect India’s investment, but merely to allow New Delhi to wind down its operations by April 2026.”
The MEA spokesperson also mentioned during the briefing that the India-Iran two-way trade is worth $1.6 billion, with India’s exports standing at $1.2 billion and imports at $ 0.4 billion, and that Iran accounts for 0.15 percent of India’s overall trade.
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