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India rejects Pakistan's Afghan offer, opens trade via Iran instead
来源：shippingazette.com 编辑：编辑部 发布：2017/11/02 09:50:25
INDIA has rejected a Pakistani offer for talks on transit trade through Pakistan to Afghanistan, reports the Hindu daily in Chennai.
"It wasn't a real offer, as far as India sees it, an Indian official told the Hindu.
The offer was made by Pakistani Army chief of staff, General Qamar Javed, when he met Afghan President Ashraf Ghani in Kabul.
During discussions on the renewal of the Afghanistan-Pakistan Transit Trade Agreement (APTTA), that lapsed in 2015, President Ghani repeated concerns that trade with India over the Wagah border had been blocked by Pakistan, despite being agreed to in the APTTA.
President Ghani is understood to have conveyed the new offer to New Delhi, but Indian officials at the SCO Afghanistan-Contact Group in Moscow said thanks, but no thanks.
Following the rejection, India shipped its first consignment to the war-torn Afghanistan by sea through Iran's Port of Chahbahar bypassing Pakistan, reported the Lahore paper, Pakistan Today.
Indian External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj said the shipment marked the convergence of India, Afghanistan and Iran to spur an unhindered flow of commerce and trade throughout the region.
India shipped 1.1 million tons of wheat to Afghanistan from the western seaport of Kandla on October 29. The shipment will be taken by truck to Afghanistan from the Iranian port.
"I believe that this is the starting point of our journey to realise the full spectrum of connectivity - from culture to commerce, from traditions to technology, from investments to IT, from services to strategy and from people to politics," said Mr Swaraj.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi tweeted that the launch of the trade route "marks a new chapter in regional cooperation & connectivity".
US President Donald Trump urged India to play a bigger role in Afghanistan's development when he presented his new South Asia strategy in August.
Meanwhile, Afghanistan has exported 981 tons of fruit to India with the Afghan president's active encouragement, reports Kabul's TOLOnews Agency.
The office of the Afghan president said in a statement that the latest air cargo flight left Kandahar Airport on Friday, carrying at least 40 tons of fruit.
Afghanistan has sent 981 tons of fresh and dried fruit to India through the Afghan-India Air Corridor Programme since June 18, the Office of the Senior Advisor to the President on Banking and Finance said in a statement on Saturday.
"It wasn't a real offer, as far as India sees it, an Indian official told the Hindu.
The offer was made by Pakistani Army chief of staff, General Qamar Javed, when he met Afghan President Ashraf Ghani in Kabul.
During discussions on the renewal of the Afghanistan-Pakistan Transit Trade Agreement (APTTA), that lapsed in 2015, President Ghani repeated concerns that trade with India over the Wagah border had been blocked by Pakistan, despite being agreed to in the APTTA.
President Ghani is understood to have conveyed the new offer to New Delhi, but Indian officials at the SCO Afghanistan-Contact Group in Moscow said thanks, but no thanks.
Following the rejection, India shipped its first consignment to the war-torn Afghanistan by sea through Iran's Port of Chahbahar bypassing Pakistan, reported the Lahore paper, Pakistan Today.
Indian External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj said the shipment marked the convergence of India, Afghanistan and Iran to spur an unhindered flow of commerce and trade throughout the region.
India shipped 1.1 million tons of wheat to Afghanistan from the western seaport of Kandla on October 29. The shipment will be taken by truck to Afghanistan from the Iranian port.
"I believe that this is the starting point of our journey to realise the full spectrum of connectivity - from culture to commerce, from traditions to technology, from investments to IT, from services to strategy and from people to politics," said Mr Swaraj.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi tweeted that the launch of the trade route "marks a new chapter in regional cooperation & connectivity".
US President Donald Trump urged India to play a bigger role in Afghanistan's development when he presented his new South Asia strategy in August.
Meanwhile, Afghanistan has exported 981 tons of fruit to India with the Afghan president's active encouragement, reports Kabul's TOLOnews Agency.
The office of the Afghan president said in a statement that the latest air cargo flight left Kandahar Airport on Friday, carrying at least 40 tons of fruit.
Afghanistan has sent 981 tons of fresh and dried fruit to India through the Afghan-India Air Corridor Programme since June 18, the Office of the Senior Advisor to the President on Banking and Finance said in a statement on Saturday.