National Security Adviser (NSA) Ajit Doval met with his Russian and Iranian counterparts, Nikolay Patrushev and Ali-Akbar Ahmadian, on Tuesday to strengthen security and economic cooperation. The talks took place on the sidelines of the meeting of the senior BRICS officials responsible for security affairs in Johannesburg, according to a statement from the office of the Security Council of the Russian Federation, which highlighted the details of the talks.
During the meeting with Nikolay Patrushev, the Secretary of the Security Council of Russia, both leaders delved into cooperation between Russia and India on security and economics, the statement said.
Another key topic discussed during the meeting with Ali-Akbar Ahmadian, secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, was India-Iran cooperation for the development of Chabahar port in southern Iran, the IRNA news agency reported.
Ahmadian hailed the port of Chabahar as a symbol of India-Iran cooperation and stressed the importance of speeding up the implementation of bilateral agreements in the fields of transportation, energy and banking. He stated that Iran is ready to expand cooperation in countering terrorism and drug trafficking, the report said.
NSA Ajit Doval praised the joint efforts of India and Iran to promote bilateral cooperation, and stressed the importance of the Chabahar project in Iran-India economic relations. He urged the removal of all obstacles to the progress of this critical initiative, it added.
According to the report, Doval described Chabahar as the “most important project in Iran-India economic relations and called for the removal of roadblocks”.
While no official statement has been issued from the Indian side following these meetings, the talks demonstrated India’s readiness for closer cooperation within the non-aligned movement and demonstrated the country’s commitment to strengthening security and economic ties with Russia and Iran.
The meetings took place on the sidelines of the meeting of the BRICS grouping of NSAs and senior representatives for national security, including Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa.
