Milak border terminal in the southeastern Sistan-Baluchestan Province to the neighboring Afghanistan reopened on Thursday after a week of closure and over 70 Iranian truckers returned to the country, according to Rouhollah Latifi, the spokesperson of the Islamic Republic of Iran Customs Administration.
Over the past three weeks, the movement of trucks and freight forwarders was delayed due to a strike by Afghan truckers and their blocking of the return route of Iranian trucks and the counteraction on the part of Iranians.
In its fight against outbound smuggling, Sistan-Baluchestan Provincial Security Council has apprehended Afghan trucks carrying fuel from Iran. The Afghans were willing to pay fines rather than see their trucks impounded in Iran for three months. Therefore, some Afghan transportation companies and truckers closed the return route of Iranian trucks at the Milak border crossing to challenge the decision.
In response, Iran restricted the return route of Afghan trucks to their country as well.
Border officials of the two countries underscored the importance of cross-border trade and the reopening of Milak border following a meeting on Tuesday and finally it was reopened on Thursday morning, Latifi was quoted as saying by Mehr News Agency.
Afghanistan was Iran’s fourth export destination in the four months endng July 21. It purchased 2.11 million tons of goods worth $713 million, accounting for 8% of Iran’s total exports in the four months.
Besides Milak (which is the main trade corridor between Iran and Afghanistan), the two countries have two other border crossings, namely Mahiroud in South Khorasan Province and Dogharoun in Taybad County of Khorasan Razavi province.
According to Hamid Mohammadi, an official with Road Maintenance and Transportation Office of Khorasan Razavi, Afghanistan has transported 15,000 tons of its products by 610 trucks through Dogharoun to Iran’s southern borders and western border from March 20 to July 21.
“Since March 20 up until now, 256 trucks have transported goods from Chabahar Port to Dogharoun compared with 11 trucks in the last fiscal year (March 2019-20),” he was quoted as saying by IRNA on Friday.
