As Iran and India Forge Deeper Ties, Will the U.S. Stand in the Way?

As Iran and India Forge Deeper Ties, Will the U.S. Stand in the Way?
Iranian President Hassan Rouhani holds the hands of Indian President Ram Nath Kovind and Prime Minister Narendra Modi during a ceremonial reception, New Delhi, India, Feb. 17, 2018 (AP photo by Manish Swarup).

On Feb. 17, during a meeting in New Delhi, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi signed nine new bilateral agreements, including an 18-month lease of part of the Iranian port of Chabahar, near the Pakistan border, to India for an $85 million development project. Modi said the port deal would help expand “the centuries-old bilateral relationship.” In an email interview, Arshin Adib-Moghaddam, professor in Global Thought and Comparative Philosophies at the School of Oriental and African Studies in London and the recent author of “Psycho-nationalism: Global Thought, Iranian Imaginations,” explains the significance of the port deal, other areas of collaboration, and whether the United States could be a spoiler.

WPR: What is the importance of the Chabahar port deal for both Iran and India?

Arshin Adib-Moghaddam: The port at Chabahar is of immense geostrategic importance for both countries, and the lease agreement is yet another indicator of the deepening relations between Iran and India. As I wrote in my recent book, Iran and India have close cultural links spanning centuries that have repeatedly been translated into economic cooperation and diplomatic achievement. The port deal emerges as a practical outcome of this sound relationship. For Iran, it is an essential step toward strengthening the “eastern pivot” in the country’s foreign policy, which it has pursued as a strategic preference since the revolution of 1979, when Iran re-oriented its foreign policy toward Asia. Chabahar is Iran’s southernmost city, positioned outside the volatile Persian Gulf, which gives Iran direct access to the Gulf of Oman and, from there, to the Arabian Sea. It is also one of the most socio-economically deprived areas of Iran, and the port deal is likely to generate more foreign direct investment.

Keep reading for free!

Get instant access to the rest of this article by submitting your email address below. You'll also get access to three articles of your choice each month and our free newsletter:

Or, Subscribe now to get full access.

Already a subscriber? Log in here .

What you’ll get with an All-Access subscription to World Politics Review:

A WPR subscription is like no other resource — it’s like having a personal curator and expert analyst of global affairs news. Subscribe now, and you’ll get:

  • Immediate and instant access to the full searchable library of tens of thousands of articles.
  • Daily articles with original analysis, written by leading topic experts, delivered to you every weekday.
  • Regular in-depth articles with deep dives into important issues and countries.
  • The Daily Review email, with our take on the day’s most important news, the latest WPR analysis, what’s on our radar, and more.
  • The Weekly Review email, with quick summaries of the week’s most important coverage, and what’s to come.
  • Completely ad-free reading.

And all of this is available to you when you subscribe today.