Al Jazeera: Iran and India have inked nine agreements, including leasing part of the Iranian port of Chabahar to an Indian company, after "substantive" bilateral talks between the Indian prime minister and the Iranian president in New Delhi.
"We had detailed discussions on ways to further deepen cooperation between India and Iran," Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi tweeted on Saturday, after "fruitful" talks with President Hassan Rouhani.
A joint statement described the Chabahar Port, which is being developed with funding from India, as a "golden gateway" that will help in reaching out to land-locked Afghanistan and central Asia.
During the joint press conference, Rouhani spoke on the importance of rail links from Chabahar to Zahedan, near the Afghan border.
Last year, New Delhi successfully sent shipments of wheat assistance to Afghanistan through Chabahar Port, bypassing archrival, Pakistan. Islamabad does not allow New Delhi to use its land route to reach Afghanistan.
"Chabahar offers India connectivity to Afghanistan and Central Asia. Along with Bandar Abbas port, it also offers India a means of multimodal connectivity all the way to Europe," said Manoj Joshi, senior analyst at Observer Research Foundation (ORF), a think-tank based in New Delhi.
"This enables India to bypass the Pakistan blockade and play a significant role in Central Asia and Afghanistan. It also helps to keep Pakistan off-balance with regard to India," Joshi told Al Jazeera.
A joint statement described the Chabahar Port, which is being developed with funding from India, as a "golden gateway" that will help in reaching out to land-locked Afghanistan and central Asia.
During the joint press conference, Rouhani spoke on the importance of rail links from Chabahar to Zahedan, near the Afghan border.
Last year, New Delhi successfully sent shipments of wheat assistance to Afghanistan through Chabahar Port, bypassing archrival, Pakistan. Islamabad does not allow New Delhi to use its land route to reach Afghanistan.
"Chabahar offers India connectivity to Afghanistan and Central Asia. Along with Bandar Abbas port, it also offers India a means of multimodal connectivity all the way to Europe," said Manoj Joshi, senior analyst at Observer Research Foundation (ORF), a think-tank based in New Delhi.
"This enables India to bypass the Pakistan blockade and play a significant role in Central Asia and Afghanistan. It also helps to keep Pakistan off-balance with regard to India," Joshi told Al Jazeera.
Hadi Haqshenas, deputy head of Iran's Ports and Maritime Organisation, said, "Chabahar's development is the most important maritime connectivity cooperation between Tehran and New Delhi.
"While, in Pakistan, the Chinese invested in the development of the Port of Gwadar; in Chabahar, part of the investment was brought by India. So these two ports, which are located at a short distance from each other, can help connectivity from India and China to Central Asia and vice-versa," Haqshenas told Al Jazeera.
On Saturday, Rouhani was accorded a ceremonial welcome at the presidential palace in New Delhi.
Both India and Iran want to see a peaceful, stable Afghanistan, Modi said at a joint press conference with Rouhani, underscoring New Delhi's focus on Kabul.
An official joint statement also referred to "strengthening India-Iran-Afghanistan trilateral consultations". The three nations had signed a trilateral transit agreement during Modi's visit to Tehran in May 2016.
Trade ties between the two countries have been dominated by Indian import of Iranian crude oil. India is the second largest buyer of Iranian crude after China.
According to India's Foreign Ministry, India-Iran bilateral trade during the fiscal year 2016-17 reached $12.89bn >>>
While Canada's Barbie Boy Justine Trudeau isn't ... ;)
Justin Trudeau in India: Is the Canadian PM being cold-shouldered? (bbc)
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's first official visit to India has not been the headline-grabbing love fest he must be accustomed to on his overseas trips.
Despite plenty of photo opportunities, including at the Taj Mahal, Mr Trudeau and his family's tour has been largely ignored by senior members of the Indian government so far.