US sanctions and escalating regional tensions have stalled India’s ambitions for Iran’s Chabahar port, a vital gateway to Afghanistan, Central Asia and beyond. Despite mounting obstacles, New Delhi is betting on strategic patience to keep its regional connectivity vision alive

The peaks and troughs that have come to define the development of Iran’s strategically located Chabahar port offer a stark reminder of how geopolitics can hamper major infrastructure projects. Vital for Iran, the port is also crucial for India, which views it as a strategic anchor for its own sub-regional connectivity efforts.

The Chabahar project, however, remains severely hobbled by an ever-shifting global landscape. Over the years, the port’s development and operational use have been crippled by unilateral US sanctions stemming from long-drawn Washington-Tehran tensions.

The recent completion of a key rail link between Chabahar and Iranshahr, part of the larger planned 630-km line extending to Zahedan near the Afghan border, should have given India cause for cheer. But use of this rail link by India will have to wait, with Chabahar under sanctions.

Construction of the Chabahar-Iranshahr-Zahedan rail link has also suffered from prolonged delays. But Iran now says the entire Chabahar-Zahedan rail link, designed to carry 7.7 million tonnes of freight and 2.2 million passengers annually, will be ready by January next year. Once operational, this rail link could be a game-changer for regional........

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