TEHRAN - Ambassador of the Republic of Finland to Tehran Kari Kahiluoto has visited Iran’s Chabahar port in Southeastern Sistan-Baluchestan Province to explore avenues of mutual cooperation in the future.

As reported by the Iranian Ports and Maritime Organization (PMO), during this visit Kahiluoto has expressed his country’s willingness for providing technical assistance to this port and using the port’s capacities for connecting to East Asian countries.

“Chabahar port is seeking superior technology, and Finland, as a provider of such technology, welcomes the provision of services to the port of Chabahar,” the ambassador said.

“The port of Chabahar is important for Finland in terms of providing humanitarian aid to Afghanistan and relations with Asian countries,” Kahiluoto added.

The official noted that during his visit to the port, he has collected a good body of knowledge about the port’s capacities and potentials and will inform Finnish companies about the opportunities in the Iranian oceanic port.

During this visit, Behrouz Aghaei, the director-general of the Ports and Maritime Department of Sistan-Baluchestan Province, who also accompanied the Finnish ambassador, noted that Chabahar port has made good progress in the past few years in terms of construction and infrastructure, and this port has no restrictions on providing services, and any country that is interested in investing in Chabahar port will be welcomed.

He said that this year, most of the ships carrying basic goods to the port of Shahid Beheshti in Chabahar have been large-scale vessels with over 70,000 tons of capacity.

As reported, Finland is interested in using Chabahar port as part of a corridor for transiting goods to East Asia.

As Iran's only oceanic port on the Gulf of Oman, Chabahar port holds great significance for the country both politically and economically. The country has taken serious measures for developing this port in order to improve the country’s maritime trade.

In this regard, the Islamic Republic has been welcoming investors from all over the world to take part in the development of this port and benefit from its distinguished position as a trade hub in the region.

Chabahar port consists of Shahid Kalantari and Shahid Beheshti terminals, each of which has five berth facilities. The port is located in Iran’s Sistan-Baluchestan Province and is about 120 kilometers southwest of Pakistan’s Baluchistan province, where the China-funded Gwadar port is situated.

In May 2016, India, Iran, and Afghanistan signed a trilateral agreement for the strategically-located Chabahar to give New Delhi access to Kabul and Central Asia.

Based on an agreement with Iran, India is currently installing and operating modern loading and unloading equipment including mobile harbor cranes in Shahid Beheshti Port in Chabahar.

EF/MA

Photo: Finnish Ambassador to Tehran Kari Kahiluoto (2nd L) and Director-General of Ports and Maritime Department of Sistan-Baluchestan Province Behrouz Aghaei (1st R)