Significance of Iran's gas for

   Regional Interests, peace

 According to the latest reports, the contract for transfer of Iran's gas to India through a pipeline via Pakistan is going through its final stages.

A joint communiqué issued in this regard puts the value of the contract at over 7 billion dollars and the length of the pipeline for conduit of gas from Iran's South Pars gas field to India's borders through southern part of Pakistan at 1625 miles.
Analysts believe that the pipeline which is dubbed as the "peace pipeline" guarantees interests of the three countries. India is in need of new sources of energy to meet the ever-increasing demand of its giant industries and rapid growth of its economy. Meanwhile, through transfer of Iran's gas to India, Pakistan will earn over one billion dollars. Iran, which stands in the second place in the world (after Russia) in terms of its giant natural gas reserves, will find a reliable, secure and stable market for its most important source of energy. Furthermore, the said pipeline will ease the tension that prevailed in one of the most critical regions of the world that is to say between India and Pakistan, over the past decades. Thus it deserves to be referred to as the "peace pipeline".
In addition, it would leave positive effects on the environment because natural gas is the cleanest form of fossil fuel and its conduit to India would reduce heat damages worldwide.

Even more important, the said project would add up to Iran's status and credit at the world level. Given the West's concern in relation to security of energy imports and, for example, problems that were experienced recently when Russia's gas exports to Ukraine, and ultimately to the European Union, were stopped, the said pipeline could serve as a suitable example for building confidence in this part of the world in relation to "security and stability of energy imports".
It should be noted that persistent opposition of certain big powers such as the US to the signing of the said agreement is viewed by analysts as being indicative of their hegemonic tendencies in relation to independence of countries in making proper decisions for the sake of their own welfare and for utilization of their political, economic and geographical potentials.
It is hoped that the parties to the agreement India and Pakistan while preserving their independence of word and action in this regard would not yield to the unreasonable and domineering demands.
However, the US can no more adhere to and insist on its double-standard policies. Because, on the one hand it ignores Iran's right for taking advantage of peaceful nuclear energy by reasoning that the country is rich in oil and gas resources and on the other hand opposes to the use of such a God-given resource for economic development and social welfare of the country.
Therefore, despite the US opposition to the project and its insistence on the import of gas from Turkmenistan via Afghanistan, Iran is trying to realize implementation of the tripartite pipeline project with Pakistan and India.
Although India, in chorus with the US, gave a positive vote for the referral of Iran's nuclear case to the UN Security Council last February, however, both Iran and India (which claims not to submit to US pressures with relation to gas imports from Iran) do not consider such an event as an impeding barrier for continuation of their cooperation.

It should be noted that the US government has recently signed a civilian nuclear agreement with India which is pending approval of the US Congress while some US lawmakers have expressed opposition to the pact due to India-Iran cooperation. Reports indicate that for this reason the US administration has recently asked India to make a revision in the said agreement which has been rejected by the Indian government.
Meanwhile, Pakistani prime minister in a meeting with Iranian president during the recent ECO conference in Baku called for the speedy implementation of Iran-Pakistan-India gas pipeline project. Given their severe need to natural gas for the continuation of the trend of their growing economy both Pakistan and India consider the 7-billion-dollar contract for the implementation of the 2600-km pipeline project as highly important. In their opinion, implementation of the contract and strengthening of relations in addition to guaranteeing economic benefits for the three parties plays a significant role in maintaining peace in the region.