India, Iran and Afghanistan have agreed to work for expanding trade and transit co-operation through Chabahar port in Iran. The representatives of the three countries will meet over the next months to expedite the process. The move was finalized at a trilateral meeting of the top officials from the three sides.

India was represented by the Foreign Secretary Ranjan Mathai while the Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Dr. Abbas Agrachi and Afghanistan’s Deputy Foreign Minister Abdul Yai were present on behalf of their countries.

Located in South East Iran, Chabahar port offers great opportunities in trade and commerce for India in Afghanistan and Central Asia. It bypasses Pakistan, which blocks the land routes to Afghanistan.

Earlier in the morning, the preparatory meeting in the run up to 16th NAM Summit got underway at IRIB Conference Center in Teheran.

In his inaugural address, the Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi mentioned several important issues ranging from the concerns over its nuclear program, Arab Spring, Palestine, countering terrorism, human rights, reforms at United Nations and sustainable development.

He said Iran’s nuclear program is peaceful and it is willing to work with the international community community.

Referring to the Arab Spring, he said the legitimate public concerns must be addressed but any foreign intervention in the wave of unrest that sweeps the region is unacceptable. He urged the Non aligned member nations to take effective steps to weed out terrorism and focus on multilateral co-operation.

The meeting will be followed by the Foreign Ministers meeting on August 28-29 and then the summit on August 30-31.