Latest news with #INSTC
Economic Times
3 days ago
- Politics
- Economic Times
Pakistan eyes chair of UNSC panel dealing with Taliban sanctions
Pakistan is vying for the chairmanship of the UNSC 1988 Committee, which oversees sanctions against the Taliban, as it seeks to improve relations with Kabul. Despite likely missing out on the 1267 Al-Qaeda sanctions committee, Pakistan aims to leverage the 1988 committee to potentially ease restrictions on the Taliban. Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Pakistan is eyeing chairmanship of the UNSC 1988 Committee, which focuses on the sanctions' regime against the Taliban amid Islamabad's attempt to improve ties with which is unlikely to get chairmanship of 1267 Al-Qaeda sanctions committee of the UNSC, has been lobbying hard to get chairmanship of 1988 committee, hoping to play a role in getting relief for Taliban, ET has a non-permanent member of UNSC, will hold UNSC's rotating presidency this July and is expected to utilise it to push its narrative against India, sources on the backfoot by India-Taliban bonhomie that also resulted in Afghanistan's acting foreign minister condemning the Pahalgam terror attacks, India relaxing medical visa rules for Afghans and Kabul seeking to use Chabahar Port and INSTC, Islamabad with Beijing's assistance stepped up efforts to regain its influence in foreign minister Wang Yi played the role of a peacemaker by bringing the foreign ministers of Pakistan and Afghanistan to the same table last month. China is also keen to include Afghanistan into CPEC The 1988 committee aims to ensure that individuals and entities associated with the Taliban are not allowed to participate in activities that threaten peace, stability and security in Afghanistan. It monitors the implementation of sanctions, ensuring that they are effectively goal is to support a peaceful, stable and prosperous Afghanistan by deterring support to terrorist entities and promoting peace and reconciliation. The panel reviews and approves listing and delisting of individuals and entities on the sanctions committee approves travel ban exemptions for individuals on the list when necessary, such as for medical treatment or meetings related to regional security. The committee monitors the implementation of asset freezes for individuals and entities on the list.
Time of India
3 days ago
- Politics
- Time of India
Pakistan eyes chair of UNSC panel dealing with Taliban sanctions
Pakistan is vying for the chairmanship of the UNSC 1988 Committee, which oversees sanctions against the Taliban, as it seeks to improve relations with Kabul. Despite likely missing out on the 1267 Al-Qaeda sanctions committee, Pakistan aims to leverage the 1988 committee to potentially ease restrictions on the Taliban. Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Pakistan is eyeing chairmanship of the UNSC 1988 Committee, which focuses on the sanctions' regime against the Taliban amid Islamabad's attempt to improve ties with which is unlikely to get chairmanship of 1267 Al-Qaeda sanctions committee of the UNSC, has been lobbying hard to get chairmanship of 1988 committee, hoping to play a role in getting relief for Taliban, ET has a non-permanent member of UNSC, will hold UNSC's rotating presidency this July and is expected to utilise it to push its narrative against India, sources on the backfoot by India-Taliban bonhomie that also resulted in Afghanistan's acting foreign minister condemning the Pahalgam terror attacks, India relaxing medical visa rules for Afghans and Kabul seeking to use Chabahar Port and INSTC, Islamabad with Beijing's assistance stepped up efforts to regain its influence in foreign minister Wang Yi played the role of a peacemaker by bringing the foreign ministers of Pakistan and Afghanistan to the same table last month. China is also keen to include Afghanistan into CPEC The 1988 committee aims to ensure that individuals and entities associated with the Taliban are not allowed to participate in activities that threaten peace, stability and security in Afghanistan. It monitors the implementation of sanctions, ensuring that they are effectively goal is to support a peaceful, stable and prosperous Afghanistan by deterring support to terrorist entities and promoting peace and reconciliation. The panel reviews and approves listing and delisting of individuals and entities on the sanctions committee approves travel ban exemptions for individuals on the list when necessary, such as for medical treatment or meetings related to regional security. The committee monitors the implementation of asset freezes for individuals and entities on the list.
Hindustan Times
27-05-2025
- Business
- Hindustan Times
Chabahar port capacity to be expanded, linked to rail network by mid-2026
An Indian state-run company's operations at Iran's Chabahar port are set to get a boost when the facility's capacity is substantially expanded and connected to the Iranian railway network by mid-2026, people familiar with the matter said. India and Iran have continued their efforts to further develop Chabahar port despite the potential threat from the US administration of ending waivers to sanctions that benefited the facility on the Gulf of Oman, the people said on condition of anonymity. Work is underway to expand the Chabahar port's capacity from 100,000 TEUs (twenty-foot equivalent units) to 500,000 TEUs and to connect the port to the Iranian railway network by completing 700-km of tracks to connect Chabahar and Zahedan. Both projects are expected to be complete by the middle of next year, the people said. 'Things are moving but not at the pace we would like,' one of the people said. 'But we seem to be on course for a breakthrough by next year.' The completion of the rail link will allow India and Iran to use the port as a gateway to the International North-South Transport Corridor (INSTC) and increase access to markets in Central Asian and Eurasian countries, the people said. Efforts to realise the port's full potential also figured in discussions during Iranian foreign minister Abbas Araghchi's visit to New Delhi earlier this month. In May last year, India and Iran signed a 10-year agreement for operations at Shahid Beheshti terminal of Chabahar port. Besides a commitment to invest $120 million to acquire equipment for port operations, India offered a credit window of $250 million for developing infrastructure around the deep-sea port. While the US administration announced in February this year that it could potentially end waivers to sanctions on Iran that had benefited Chabahar, the people said no action had been taken in this regard by Washington so far. A national security presidential memorandum signed by US President Donald Trump in February directed secretary of state Marco Rubio to 'modify or rescind sanction waivers', including those related to Chabahar port. Since then, the Trump administration has launched talks with Iran on its nuclear programme, raising hopes that there wouldn't be any immediate action related to sanctions. Iran and the US held their fifth round of negotiations on the nuclear issue last week. The developments have come at a time when there has been a steady increase in the handling of cargo by Chabahar port in recent years. According to figures provided by the government in Parliament, the volume of goods moved through Chabahar port in Iran has increased from 1.2 million tonnes in FY21 to 2.84 million tonnes in FY24. In December 2018, state-run India Ports Global Limited took over operations at Shahid Beheshti terminal at Chabahar port through its wholly owned subsidiary, India Ports Global Chabahar Free Zone. Since 2018, the port has handled more than 450 vessels, 134,082 TEUs of container cargo and more than 8.7 million tonnes of bulk and general cargo, external affairs minister S Jaishankar told Rajya Sabha last November. India has supplied port equipment worth $24 million so far and the process for procuring the remaining equipment is underway, he said.
Epoch Times
26-05-2025
- Business
- Epoch Times
Russia's Emerging North-South Transit Route to Link St. Petersburg to Indian Ocean
Earlier this month, Russian and Iranian engineers began survey work for the planned construction of a railway line linking the Iranian cities of Rasht and Astara along the southwestern coast of the Caspian Sea. According to Russia's transport ministry, the project will involve construction of eight train stations, dozens of bridges, and 100 miles of railway track. 'The potential of the route is obvious,' Russian Transport Minister Roman Starovoit said in a May 16 Once completed, the Rasht-Astara railway line will connect Central Russia, via Azerbaijan, to Iranian ports on the Indian Ocean. 'It will create an uninterrupted rail link between Russia's railway system and the Persian Gulf,' said Stanislav Pritchin, head of the Central Asia desk at Moscow's Institute of World Economy and International Relations. In 2023, when Russia and Iran agreed to jointly develop the Rasht-Astara railway line, Russian President Vladimir Putin said the move would reduce Missing Link The Rasht-Astara line will be the final link of the International North-South Transport Corridor (INSTC), a multimodal transit route that has been in the making for 25 years. Related Story 5/23/2025 Pritchin described the Rasht-Astara line, which he said would take two to three years to complete, as a 'crucial part' of the corridor's burgeoning international rail network. 'Russia and Azerbaijan have finished their respective sections of the north-south corridor,' he said. 'Now, we are waiting for Iran to complete the final link.' Although the final rail link has yet to be built, the north-south corridor as a whole is already handling significant volumes of cargo traffic. According to Russia's transport ministry, total trade volumes along the corridor reached 20 million tons in 2024. 'After the [Rasht-Astara railway] project is implemented, the capacity of the [corridor's] western route alone will be at least 15 million tons of cargo per year,' the ministry said on its Telegram channel. According to Baku's state-owned railway company, ADY, the north-south corridor This figure is expected to rise even further once Iran's Rasht-Astara rail line becomes operational, the ADY said in a January report. Seagulls perch on the shore of the Caspian Sea in Baku, Azerbaijan, on Nov. 10, summer, Putin visited Speaking alongside the Russian leader, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev said the trade corridor's segments in Azerbaijan—both road and rail—were now 'successfully operating.' Geography 'Key Factor' Still a work in progress, the north-south corridor is more than just a railway network. Rather, it is a multimodal transit corridor comprising road, rail, and maritime links. Roughly 4,500 miles in length, the project aims to increase trade connectivity between major population centers, including St. Petersburg and Moscow in Russia, Baku in Azerbaijan, Tehran and Bandar Abbas in Iran, and India's Mumbai. By traversing Russia, Azerbaijan, and Iran, the north-south corridor represents the shortest route between Europe and India. 'That's its main advantage,' Pritchin said. Mamuka Tsereteli, a senior fellow at the Central Asia-Caucasus Institute at the American Foreign Policy Council, also said that geography was the 'key factor' at play. 'The shortest way from India to Northern Europe is via Greater Central Asia, Russia, and Baltic Sea ports,' Tsereteli told The Epoch Times. 'The other benefit is that this route has the potential to become an economic corridor by integrating elements of logistical hubs and redistribution centers, serving markets along the route.' The International North-South Transport Corridor was established through a 2000 agreement between Russia, India, and Iran. It gained momentum with the 2011 Ashgabat Agreement, which sought to develop regional trade routes—including the corridor—between signatory states. Along with Iran and India, signatories of the Ashgabat Agreement include Pakistan, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, and Oman. Earlier this month, Map of the North-South Transport Corridor trade route from Mumbai, India, compared to the traditional Suez Canal trade route. Public Domain/World Factbook/CIA The north-south corridor currently consists of three main branches: a western branch through Azerbaijan, an eastern branch through Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan, and a central maritime branch that traverses the Caspian Sea. In June last year, two coal-laden trains made the first ever After crossing Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan, they arrived at the Iranian port of Bandar Abbas, where the cargo was offloaded and shipped across the Arabian Sea to India's trade capital and major western port of Mumbai. The following month, Kazakhstan signed an At the time, Kazakhstan's transport ministry said the upgrades would increase trade volumes on the corridor's eastern branch to 20 million tons by 2030. In March of this year, Astana hosted a Kazakhstan–India trade summit, at which further development of the north-south corridor 'We are paying close attention to the ... transport sector,' Sanzhar Ualikhanov, a Kazakh Foreign Ministry official, said at the summit, adding that the north-south corridor now represented 'the primary corridor linking Kazakhstan with India.' Rivaling the Suez Since its inception, the north-south corridor has been touted as a potential alternative to the traditional trade route through the Red Sea and Egypt's Suez Canal. According to Pritchin, however, the corridor will not pose a serious challenge to the maritime route until Iran's Rasht-Astara railway line becomes operational. 'Cargo is already being transported through Iran,' Pritchin said. 'But without this final link in the rail network, the [corridor] will remain too expensive—and too inconvenient—to compete with the Suez Canal.' Tsereteli said the north-south corridor would face difficulties competing with the maritime routes—even in the long term—due to both higher costs and geopolitical considerations. 'Even if shippers have to take a longer route around the Horn of Africa due to the security situation in the Red Sea, it will still be less costly to deliver cargos to most European markets by sea,' he said. Ships sail along Egypt's Suez Canal near Ismailia on April 16, 2025. KHALED DESOUKI/AFP via Getty Images What's more, he added, inter-regional trade via the corridor will face a host of restrictions due to ongoing Western sanctions on both Russia and Iran. 'If there were no geopolitical constraints, free and open connectivity between the Indian subcontinent and Gulf countries and Europe—via Iran, the Caspian region, and Russia—would be a preferred option for producers and traders,' Tsereteli said. 'But sanctions exist and geopolitical realities limit the potential of the INSTC. 'At the same time, the INSTC will face major competition from the India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor, which has growing European support and fewer geopolitical challenges.' That ship-to-rail transit network connects Mumbai and Europe through the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, and Israel. Nevertheless, Moscow appears to be moving full steam ahead on the ambitious project. This week, Russia's state-run railway authority RZD said it was mulling plans to extend the north-south corridor into several African 'Given the potential of developing trade with [African] countries, we see prospects for the further ... extension,' RZD deputy head Sergei Pavlov told Russia's Interfax news agency on May 22.
Time of India
25-05-2025
- Business
- Time of India
India to host 5 Central Asian foreign ministers in June
India is set to host Central Asian foreign ministers to bolster anti-terror cooperation amid rising regional extremism. Discussions will prioritize effective counter-terror strategies, inclusive connectivity via INSTC and Chabahar, and resource procurement. Concerns over terror networks with roots in the Af-Pak region are growing, prompting crackdowns and heightened security measures across Central Asia and Russia. Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads India will host five Central Asian foreign ministers for the first time, in early June, as it seeks to enhance anti-terror and deradicalisation partnerships. The meeting comes amid continued incidents of cross-border terror, highlighted by the deadly Pahalgam attacks last in India's extended neighbourhood, and along the Af-Pak region, Central Asia has been a victim of extremism with a growing threat of cross-border terror emanating from Pakistan, people meeting could eventually lead to New Delhi hosting the India-Central Asia leadership Summit first planned to coincide with the 2022 Republic Day foreign ministers' meeting will focus on effective counter-terror mechanisms and inclusive connectivity corridors in Eurasia with special emphasis on the International North South Transport Corridor ( INSTC ) and the Chabahar Port in Iran, ET has have already begun shipping export consignments to India through INSTC and Chabahar port. India will also seek to procure natural resources, including critical minerals, and expand defence ties with Central Asia, building on the goodwill and legacy from the Soviet Union period, experts are rising both in India, Central Asia, and Russia over the growing extremist network in pockets of Central Asia with roots in the Af-Pak region. Over the last few months, authorities have cracked down on terror cells in Kyrgyzstan-Tajikistan-Kazakhstan. Terror attacks in the Moscow region earlier this year had their roots in Central Asia and Af-Pak joint declaration of the 2024 SCO Summit in Astana saw the harshest language ever on terrorism and cross-border terror.
