Following the signing of a 10-year agreement with Iran to assume control of the Chabahar port, the United States State Department has issued a warning to India about the "possible risk of sanctions."
"Any entity, anyone considering business deals with Iran, needs to be aware of the potential risk that they are opening themselves up to and the potential risk of sanctions," State Department Spokesperson Vedant Patel said during a news briefing in Washington on Monday.
Washington will "continue to enforce" the sanctions imposed by the US on Iran, he reaffirmed.
The spokesperson said that Indian companies are likewise susceptible to fines.
The State Department statement comes after India and Iran signed a 10-year contract on Monday to construct and equip Iran's significant Chabahar port.
The development occurred as India strives to expand trade in western and central Asia. According to Iran's Ministry of Roads and Urban Development, the agreement will grant India ten years of access to the port, which is located near Iran's southeastern border with Pakistan.
The contract requires India Ports Global Limited (IPGL) to invest $370 million in "providing strategic equipment" and "developing the port's transport infrastructure."
Iran's Urban Development Minister Mehrdad Bazrpash and India's Ports and Shipping Minister Sarbananda Sonowal signed a contract in Chabahar during a ceremony carried live by state television.
Chabahar port is located on the Indian Ocean, approximately 100 kilometers (62 miles) west of the Pakistani border.