India to Transport Vaccines and Wheat to Afghanistan Via Iran

India received support from Iran in transporting humanitarian assistance to Afghanistan. Iran has now offered to help India deliver wheat, medicines, and coronavirus vaccinations to Afghanistan, which is now experiencing a severe humanitarian crisis. 

During a phone conversation between External Affairs Minister Dr. S Jaishankar and his Iranian colleague Hossein Amir Abdollahian, the latter volunteered to enable Indian wheat, life-saving drugs, and Covid vaccines to be sent to Afghanistan across Iranian borders. 

India has the option of sending assistance to Afghanistan via Iran's Chabahar port. 

Amir Abdollahian emphasized the importance of establishing an inclusive government in Afghanistan. In a statement, he also mentioned India's humanitarian assistance to Afghanistan, announcing "measures and cooperation by the Islamic Republic of Iran to transport this aid in the form of wheat, medication, and COVID-19 vaccination to the country." 

Arindam Bagchi, a spokesperson for India's Ministry of External Affairs, has stated that India is in talks with Pakistan on transporting humanitarian assistance to Afghanistan, which is a land-locked country. 

A few days earlier, India sent the third batch of medical assistance to Afghanistan, comprising of two tonnes of life-saving drugs. On January 1, it delivered 500,000 doses of Coronavirus vaccine (Covaxin) to Afghanistan as humanitarian assistance. 

 India has promised to supply food grains, one million doses of Covid vaccinations, and life-saving medications to the Afghan people. Through the World Health Organization, India supplied 1.6 tonnes of medical assistance to Afghanistan last month. 

According to the Iranian foreign ministry, Jaishankar also mentioned his country's assistance to Afghanistan, as well as the fact that India's policy toward the country has not changed.