Pezeshkian's India visit: Iran eyes deeper trade ties, Chabahar cooperation at BRICS Summit
Iran's Foreign Ministry reaffirmed plans to use the upcoming BRICS Leaders' Summit in New Delhi to advance bilateral engagement with India, particularly on trade and connectivity
The statement followed a meeting between Iran's President and India's Prime Minister on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Summit in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan
Connectivity and logistics infrastructure, especially cooperation on Chabahar Port, were flagged as priority areas for the bilateral relationship
Iran's President is expected to travel to New Delhi to attend the BRICS Summit, scheduled for 12-13 September 2026
BRICS Grouping and India's 2026 Chairship
BRICS began as an informal grouping of Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa, tracing its origins to a 2001 Goldman Sachs acronym and formalising cooperation from 2006, with the first leaders' summit held in 2009. It expanded in January 2024 to admit Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE as full members, followed by Indonesia in January 2025, taking full membership to 11 countries. India is hosting the 2026 summit in New Delhi as part of its chairship year.
Key Details
- Formalised: 2006 (first summit 2009, Yekaterinburg, Russia)
- Original five members: Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa
- 2024 expansion added: Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia, UAE; Indonesia joined January 2025
- 2026 summit venue: Bharat Mandapam, New Delhi, 12-13 September 2026 (18th summit)
- Key institution: New Development Bank (NDB), headquartered in Shanghai
Iran, a BRICS member since January 2024, is using the New Delhi summit as a platform to advance bilateral trade and Chabahar Port discussions with India outside formal BRICS agenda items — illustrating how minilateral groupings double as venues for bilateral diplomacy.
Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO)
The SCO is a Eurasian political, economic, and security grouping established on 15 June 2001 in Shanghai by China, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan, evolving from the earlier "Shanghai Five" mechanism. India and Pakistan became full members in 2017, and Iran joined as a full member in 2023, making it currently a ten-member body (including Belarus, admitted in 2024).
The India-Iran leaders' meeting that seeded this round of trade talks took place on the sidelines of the SCO Summit, showing SCO's role as a recurring venue for India-Iran bilateral contact alongside its core security/connectivity mandate.
Chabahar Port and the INSTC Corridor
Chabahar, on Iran's Gulf of Oman coast in Sistan-Baluchestan province, is being developed by India as a transit gateway to Afghanistan and Central Asia that bypasses Pakistan. India's Ports Global Limited (IPGL) signed a 10-year contract with Iran's Ports and Maritime Organisation in May 2024 to operate the Shahid Beheshti terminal, with India committing roughly $120 million in equipment investment and a further $250 million credit line for connected infrastructure. Chabahar is positioned as a key node of the International North-South Transport Corridor (INSTC).
Key Details
- Chabahar operating contract: signed 13 May 2024, 10-year term, IPGL and Iran's Ports & Maritime Organisation
- India's committed investment: approx. $120 million (equipment) plus $250 million (credit line for transport infrastructure)
- INSTC: established 12 September 2000, originally by India, Iran, and Russia; now has around 13 member/observer states including Central Asian republics, Azerbaijan, Armenia, Turkey, and Belarus
- INSTC route: approx. 7,200 km multimodal (sea-rail-road) corridor linking the Indian Ocean/Persian Gulf via Iran to the Caspian Sea and onward to Russia and Northern Europe
Trade and connectivity cooperation flagged by Iran centres on operationalising Chabahar as the Indian gateway into the INSTC, giving India a Pakistan-bypass route to Afghanistan and Central Asia — a recurring prelims-testable link between a bilateral port project and a multilateral transport corridor.
- BRICS 2026 Summit: New Delhi, 12-13 September 2026; 11 full members after 2024-25 expansion
- SCO: established 2001; India full member since 2017; Iran full member since 2023
- Chabahar Shahid Beheshti terminal contract: 10 years, signed May 2024; India investment ~$120 million + $250 million credit line
- INSTC: established 2000, ~7,200 km corridor, founding members India-Iran-Russia