Afghan Businesspeople Welcome Reopening of Milak Checkpoint
The Governor of Kandahar Gol Agha Shirzai said in a meeting with Iran's envoy to Afghanistan Mohammad Ebrahim-Taherian that 80 percent of heavyweight Afghan merchants are based in Kandahar and this reveals the importance of trade transactions through the Milak checkpoint.
He said the reopening of the Milak transit route plays a crucial role in boosting trade between Iran and Afghanistan.
Taherian said Iran would push for efforts to help rebuild the war-shattered country.
He stressed the prime importance of implementing a plan for ransit of goods from Iran's Chahbahar Free Trade Zone to Afghanistan.
Taherian stressed the need to expand mutual relations in all arenas.
He said Iran was building a highway to link Afghanistan's Herat to Iranian Dougharoun border checkpoint in the northeastern Province of Khorasan.
The international checkpoint of Milak in the southeastern Iranian Province of Sistan-Baluchestan opened also to boost the trade transactions between the two countries, he noted.
Iran on Thursday formally reopened the Milak border checkpoint in the southeastern Province of Sistan-Baluchestan on Afghan frontier which had been closed since June.
Milak is one of the two border checkpoints which the two countries have agreed to use for transit of goods and passengers.
All Iranian and foreign nationals holding valid visas would be allowed to cross the Milak border.
With the opening of Milak border crossing and establishing the necessary infrastructure, transit of goods between Afghanistan and Iran especially via the port of Chahbahar will be facilitated.
The Milak border links Sistan-Baluchestan to Neemroze Province in Afghanistan. The other key border checkpoint, Dougharoun, is situated between the Iranian Province of Khorasan and Herat in Afghanistan.