Stranded Trucks Move After Nine-Day Border Closure Between Pakistan and Iran

Ten attackers were killed in military operations around the Gabd and Gwadar border areas on Thursday, according to Pakistani military officials. The violence occurred after Islamabad suspended cargo traffic through the Gabd-Rimdan and Taftan crossings in Balochistan province on October 17. The suspension was cited as a necessary security measure. That halt left hundreds of freight trucks stuck on both sides of the border for nine days.

On Monday, some goods began moving again. Mir Naveed Jan Kalmati, president of the Gwadar Chamber of Commerce and Industry, stated that trade partially resumed over the weekend. Border officials cleared consignments dated from October 16 or earlier, according to goods truck association officials. This partial reopening allowed a limited flow of cargo to resume.

Haji Noor Muhammad Shahwani, central president of the Balochistan Goods Truck Owners Association, confirmed from Quetta that Pakistani exports were crossing the border. He listed rice and bananas among the goods moving. Trucks loaded in Iran before the closure, including those carrying liquefied petroleum gas, were also entering Pakistan. Shahwani noted that these vehicles are coming slowly.

The halt in Iranian LPG shipments created severe shortages and price spikes in Pakistan. The country imports the bulk of its energy from the Middle East. Its economy has already been impacted by shipping disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz caused by Iran and its response to the United States-Israel war. The return of some LPG trucks is aimed at alleviating these domestic pressures.

Rizwan Ahmed, a customs clearing agent based near the Gabd-Rimdan crossing, said customs officials told agents to file declarations for stranded trucks. Customs gave agents the go-ahead to bring in as much cargo as possible, Ahmed said. He did not specify whether this applied to goods loaded after October 16. His own consignment of rice, retail goods, potatoes, and bananas had just left the crossing.

Iranian officials argue that changes to import paperwork are holding up their cargo. Reza Amiri Moghadam, Iran’s ambassador to Pakistan, posted on X on Sunday that Iran had placed no restrictions on exports to Pakistan. He stated that changes in the implementation of Pakistan’s E-Form procedure for imports have created a situation where traders are effectively unable to dispatch cargo from Iran to Pakistan. The E-Form is designed to record imports and their payment through banks.

A Commerce Ministry memorandum from October 16 withdrew a previous waiver on the E-Form for imports from Iran. The new rules took effect immediately. Moghadam said consultations with Pakistan were under way. He cited reports that several hundred LPG trucks had crossed into Gabd but were yet to be unloaded or cleared. Shahwani said the unloading problem had not been resolved, suggesting it might be a banking issue related to international trade.

Speculation arose that Pakistan closed the border under US pressure to suffocate Iran economically. Pakistan insisted the closure was due to a deteriorating security situation in Balochistan. Balochistan accounted for 131 of the 225 armed attacks recorded nationwide in September. This marked the highest monthly national total in 12 years, according to the Pakistan Institute for Conflict and Security Studies. The province has faced a separatist rebellion for decades.

Sajjad Haider Khan, a foreign ministry spokesman, said Pakistan adheres to all applicable sanctions regimes. He stated he did not have direct knowledge of the situation on the ground and did not confirm whether the US had pressured Pakistan. The Ministry of Commerce did not respond to requests for comment. Imtiaz Baloch, a security analyst, assessed that security, procedures, and the banking system are all involved in the current delay.