US grants 6 months sanctions waiver to India on Chabahar port

The US has granted India a six-month exemption from American sanctions on the Chabahar port in Iran, the External Affairs Ministry (MEA) said on Thursday.

The sanctions were to come into effect from September 29 but following talks between the two sides, an exemption of one month was granted. The fresh exemption of the six-month period will be effective from October 29.

''For Chabahar port in Iran, we have been granted exemption for a six-month period from the US sanctions,'' External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said at his weekly media briefing.

Last month, the Trump administration announced its decision to revoke the 2018 sanctions waiver with regard to the strategically-located Chabahar port in Iran.

India is a major partner in development of the Chabahar port, located in the Sistan-Balochistan province Iran's southern coast. It is currently operating the Shahid Beheshti terminal at the port.

The US State Department had said last month that people operating the Chabahar Port and engaging in other related activities will face sanctions under the US Iran Freedom and Counter-Proliferation Act (IFCA) starting September 29.

The Chabahar port is being developed by India and Iran to boost connectivity and trade ties. Both the countries are also strongly pitching for making Chabahar port an integral part of the International North-South Transport Corridor (INSTC).

The INSTC is a 7,200-km-long multi-mode transport project for moving freight among India, Iran, Afghanistan, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Russia, Central Asia and Europe.