TEHRAN- Head of Iran’s Trade Promotion Organization (TPO) Hamid Zadboum discussed expansion of trade and customs relations during a meeting, via video conference, with an Armenian delegation comprised of senior officials from various sectors.

As reported by the TPO, the Armenian side of the meeting included deputies from the economy, and territorial administration and infrastructure ministries, Armenian ambassador to Tehran, and a representative from Customs Affairs of the Republic of Armenia.

In the video conference meeting, which was the second such meeting in the past 30 days, Zadboum mentioned the upward trend of the two countries’ trade in the current year and said: “Despite the coronavirus outbreak, the trade between Iran and Armenia has increased by up to 30 percent over the past two months compared to the same period last year.”

Equipping and modernizing road infrastructure, crossings, laboratories, quarantine centers, and cold storages on the Iran-Armenia borders, as well as establishing special banking relations similar to those with Russia, implementing bartering agreements, and the maximum use of Armenia's position and capacities for developing trade with Eurasia, were among the strategies Zadboum offered in the meeting for boosting bilateral trade.

The official further noted that supporting the expansion of the relations between the two countries' private sectors and especially the chambers of commerce, establishing joint industrial settlements near the borders to develop new markets in third countries, increasing customs working hours, and facilitating truck traffic are also among the issues that need to be addressed in order to improve trade relations.

The Armenian side also expressed their appreciation for TPO’s constructive efforts and stressed the above-mentioned issues to be explored by a working group recently formed for this purpose to find practical solutions.

On May 30, Zadboum and Armenia’s Deputy Minister of Economy Avag Avanesyan had discussed the ways for boosting bilateral cooperation in the customs and trade areas through video conference.

The two sides had also explored facilitation of trade between the two neighbors in a meeting held via video conference on May 23.

Organized by the international affairs department of Iran Chamber of Commerce, Industries, Mines and Agriculture (ICCIMA), the meeting was participated by Iranian ambassador to Armenia, ICCIMA vice chairman for the international affairs, the chairmen of ICCIMA’s committees of transportation, and non-oil exports development, the head of Iran-Armenia Joint Chamber of Commerce, and the representatives of Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Islamic Republic of Iran Customs Administration (IRICA).

Iran and Armenia have been emphasizing the need for preserving and expanding trade relations between the two countries since the preferential trade deal between Iran and EAEU was implemented.

While the U.S. renewed sanctions on Iran are aimed at isolating the Islamic Republic both politically and economically, Iran’s relations, especially in the economic sectors, with its neighbors are seemed not to be affected by the sanctions.

The northwestern neighbor Armenia is one of the countries preserving and expanding its economic relations with Iran regardless of the sanction condition.

EF/MA