U.S. sanctions waiver on Chabahar port ends on April 26, could signal end of 23-year-old connectivity project

As the U.S. sanctions waiver for Iran’s Chabahar port ends on Sunday (April 26, 2026), the government faces a major test in strategic autonomy, as it may have to choose between exiting the 23-year-old port project or facing American sanctions.

Officials of the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) have been holding talks with U.S. counterparts on the issue since October 2025, when Washington extended the waiver for six months until April 26, 2026, to give India time to “wind down” the project. Given the U.S.-Iran war and a series of U.S. measures targeting Iran under the U.S. Treasury’s “Operation Economic Fury”, officials said they were not hopeful of another extension.