TEHRAN – The second exclusive exhibition of Iranian products was opened in the Syrian capital Damascus in a ceremony on Tuesday, IRNA reported.

The opening ceremony of the exhibition was attended by Iranian Industry, Mining, and Trade Minister Reza Fatemi Amin and Syrian Economy and Foreign Trade Minister Mohammad Samer Al-Khalil.

As reported, the exhibition features 164 Iranian companies active in a variety of fields including medical equipment, medicine, construction, architecture, agriculture, livestock and poultry, oil, gas and petrochemicals, police and security equipment, as well as food, water, and electricity.

The steel industry, informatics, doors and windows, elevators, shop equipment and chain stores, motorcycles, automotive industry, textile industry, home appliances, and banking and insurance are also among the areas represented in the mentioned exhibition.

Speaking on the sidelines of the opening ceremony, Fatemi Amin expressed Iran’s interest in cooperation with Syria for reactivating the country’s economic and industrial potentials and restoring the economy.

He further announced the Islamic Republic’s readiness for joint investment in Syria to meet the domestic market needs and also to export to other countries in the region.

The first exposition of Iran in Syria after the defeat of the U.S.-backed ISIS terrorist group was held from December 25 to 28, 2018.

Over the past few years and since the end of the war in Syria, Tehran and Damascus have been taking major steps for expansion of mutual trade ties, and Syria has become one of the major focal points regarding the Iranian government’s plans for boosting non-oil exports to the region.

The two countries have been pursuing the implementation of a free trade agreement signed between the two sides back in 2010 after years of postponement.

According to Farzad Piltan, the director-general of Iran's Trade Promotion Organization (TPO)'s Office of Arabian and African Countries, the implementation of this agreement with Syria, which Fatemi Amin is scheduled to pursue during his visit to Syria, means that the two countries' traders will be exempt from current export and import restrictions and bans in their exchanges.

Considering Syria’s efforts for reconstructing the country’s war-torn infrastructures in recent years, the construction sector has been one of the major areas that Iran has been focusing on for the expansion of ties with the Arab country.

Head of Iran-Syria Joint Chamber of Commerce Keyvan Kashefi has said that currently, commodity items in the fields of housing construction, bridge and dam construction, electricity supply, and technical and engineering services are at the top of the list of exports to this country.

EF/MG

Photo: Iranian Industry Minister Reza Fatemi Amin cutting the ribbon at the opening ceremony of the Iranian exclusive exhibition in Damascus.