Ghani calls for early completion of Chabahar port

KABUL (Pajhwok): President Mohammad Ashraf Ghani on Friday stressed the need for accelerating construction of the Chabahar port in Iran and related infrastructure projects.

Located along the Makran coast in the Gulf of Oman, the strategic Chabahar port is close to the Strait of Hormuz. The project is expected facilitates about 40 percent of world‘s oil trade.

At a meeting with India’s Deputy National Security Advisor Arvind Gupta, Ghani raised the issue of developing the port at a faster clip, a statement from the Presidential Palace in Kabul said.

Apart from economic, cultural and security ties, the two sides reaffirmed their commitment to a joint struggle against the menace of terrorism. They also called for regional cooperation in bringing peace to the Afghan people.

Ghani’s National Security Adviser Mohammad Hanif Atmar also attended the pre-noon meeting, which urged regional cooperation and integration, particularly in economic development through trade and transit projects.

Chabahar port will provide India easier access to landlocked Afghanistan. It will also minimise Chinese control over Pakistan’s Gwadar port.

pr/mud

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