Chabahar would serve as ‘friend’ port for Gwadar: Iranian ambassador

ISLAMABAD: The Iranian ambassador said on Friday that the Chabahar port would not turn out to be an enemy port to Gwadar but would serve as a 'friend' port.

He was speaking at the Institute of Strategic Studies Islamabad where he was invited for a guest lecture.

Iranian ambassador to Pakistan Mehdi Honardoost said that some countries were against the Chabahar port. “But the Chabahar port would not function as an enemy port to Pakistan’s Gwadar port.”

This week Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi signed the historic Chabahar deal with Iran and Afghanistan. India agreed to invest $500 million in the Chabahar port, a move which would enable it to have better trade routes to Afghanistan, something which has made Pakistan uncomfortable.

Speaking at the event Iranian ambassador said that Iran had never supported Afghan Taliban leader Mullah Mansour who was killed in a drone strike in Pakistan’s Balochistan on Saturday. “Iran has been at odds with Afghan Taliban for the last 16 years.”

A report in the Wall Street Journal claimed that Mullah Mansour was traveling from Iran to Pakistan when he was killed in a drone. The report said that Mansour was returning after visiting his family in Iran.

The Iranian ambassador added that some countries speak out against terrorism. “But at the same time protect terrorists who open bank accounts in these countries.”