Overview
Iran and India share a millennia long history of interactions. The contemporary relations between the two countries are marked by high level exchanges, commercial cooperation, connectivity paradigm and cultural and people to people ties.
Political relations;
Iran and India signed a friendship treaty on 15 March 1950. The visit of Prime Minister Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee to Iran and the signing of the Tehran Declaration in April 2001, followed by the visit of President Seyyed Mohammad Khatami and the signing of New Delhi Declaration in 2003 enhanced the Iran-India cooperation. The two documents identified areas of cooperation and set the strategic vision for Iran- India an partnership.
The bilateral relations were further boosted by the visit of Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi to Iran in May 2016. During the visit, a joint statement titled “Civilizational Connect, Contemporary Context” was released, and 12 MOUs/Agreements were signed between India and Iran. The Trilateral Agreement on Trade, Transport and Transit between India, Iran and Afghanistan was also signed during the visit. President Rouhani visited India in February 2018, during which a joint statement titled “Towards Prosperity Through Greater Connectivity” was issued. The two sides signed 13 MOUs/Agreements during the visit, prominent among them being the contract for interim operations of Chabahar port and the MoU on Cooperation in the Field of Health and Medicine.
There have been two Speaker level visits between Iran and India, with Lok Sabha Speaker Meira Kumar visiting Iran in 2011, followed by a return visit by the Speaker of Majlis, Dr. Ali Larijani to India in 2013.
Recent Exchanges
In 2021, External Affairs Minister Dr Subrahmanyam Jaishankar visited Tehran in July and August and called on President Sayyid Ebrahim Raisi. EAM was the first foreign dignitary to call on President Raisi, following his election. Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian visited India in June 2022 and called on Prime Minister Narendra Modi. During the visit, MLAT on Civil and Commercial Matters was signed. In August 2022, Sarbananda Sonowal, Minister of Ports, Shipping and Waterways visited Iran, during which MoU on Recognition of Certificates of Competency in Unlimited Voyages between Iran and India was signed. Ali Shamkhani, Secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council visited India in November 2021 for the Delhi Regional Security Dialogue on Afghanistan.
Prime Minister Modi and President Raisi met for the first time on the sidelines of the SCO Heads of State Summit in Samarkand, Uzbekistan in September 2022, during which both leaders reaffirmed their commitment to bilateral cooperation, especially in trade and connectivity.
The two countries have in place several Bilateral Consultative Mechanisms at various levels including the Joint Committee Meeting (JCM), Foreign Office Consultations (FOC), Security Consultations at the level of National Security Advisers and Deputy National Security Advisers, and the Joint Consular Committee Meeting (JCCM). Iran and India also have Joint Working Groups to facilitate cooperation in various important sectors. The two countries also have cooperation at the level of law enforcement agencies. A bilateral meeting was held between India’s Narcotics Control Bureau and Iran’s Anti-Narcotics Police in May 2022 on Anti-Narcotics cooperation.
Both countries also engage at multilateral forums including at the United Nations and its Agencies as well as in regional initiatives including the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, Indian Ocean Rim Association, the Indian Ocean Naval Symposium, Asian Parliamentary Assembly.
Connectivity
India is developing the first Phase of Shahid Beheshti Port at Chabahar. In 2021, India provided six mobile harbor cranes to the port. Since the operationalization in December 2018, the port has handled cargo from Russia, Brazil, Germany, Bangladesh, Thailand, Romania, UAE, Kuwait and Australia among other countries. Two rounds of trilateral meetings have been held between Iran, India and Uzbekistan on Joint Use of Chabahar Port in December 2020 and December 2021. India is also coordinating as a founding member of the International North South Transport Corridor and the Trilateral Agreement on Trade, Transport and Transit to expand regional connectivity.
Trade Relations
Iran and India have robust cooperation on trade with major Indian exports to Iran including rice, tea, sugar, pharmaceuticals, manmade staple fibers, electrical machinery, artificial jewelry etc. while major Indian imports from Iran consists of dry fruits, inorganic/organic chemicals, glassware, etc.
Humanitarian Assistance
Iran and India closely cooperated on COVID-19. India has provided 1,125,000 doses of vaccines and medical supplies to Iran. Malathion insecticide was provided to Iran in 2020 and 2021 to combat desert locusts. Earlier, India has provided 103 tons of disaster relief aid to Iran during the 2019 floods.
(As on 21st November 2022)