Daily Times

NEW DELHI: India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit Iran this week, seeking to boost trade with the oil-rich country after international sanctions were lifted this year, it was announced on Tuesday.

Iran was India’s second largest supplier of crude oil until 2011/12, when sanctions forced New Delhi to reduce its dependence on the Gulf state. India’s Ministry of External Affairs said that Prime Minister Modi would meet President Hassan Rouhani during a two-day visit starting on Saturday.

The visit will allow the two countries to expand bilateral cooperation and mutually benefit from new opportunities in the wake of lifting of secondary sanctions against Iran earlier this year, it said. Earlier this year, India approved a $150 million project to develop the Iranian port of Chabahar.

India imports 80 percent of its oil and its energy needs are growing. “With this visit one can expect new opportunities for India’s private sector in manufacturing, possible long-term deals for gas imports, energy access and exploration, security and strategic connectivity partnership for access to Central Asia,” said Manoj Joshi, a senior fellow at the Observer Research Foundation think-tank.