TEHRAN - Portuguese Ambassador to Tehran Carlos Costa Neves has said his country’s private sector is eager for the resumption of trade relations with Iran after the U.S. sanctions are lifted, the portal of the Iran Chamber of Commerce, Industries, Mines and Agriculture (ICCIMA) reported.

As reported, Neves made the remarks in a meeting with the ICCIMA Head Gholam-Hossein Shafeie on Wednesday.

Speaking in this meeting, the ambassador referred to five centuries of historical relations between Iran and Portugal, saying: "Fortunately, the two countries have good relations, especially in the political dimension, however, in addition to the importance of political relations, we should not overlook economic and cultural cooperation.”

“We look forward to the positive developments of the Vienna talks that are to take place soon. We hope the sanctions will be lifted. This is especially important for large companies. Fortunately, we heard positive news in the first half of this year and this has created a positive economic outlook, and our companies hope to be able to return to Iran and start investing,” the official said.

Further in the meeting, Shafeie mentioned the great capacities for economic cooperation between Iran and Portugal, saying that Portugal has the capacity to meet the needs of the Iranian market in a variety of areas including cork, textiles, fisheries, and aquaculture.

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Photo: ICCIMA Head Gholam-Hossein Shafeie (R) and Portuguese Ambassador to Tehran Carlos Costa Neves