TEHRAN – Head of Iran Chamber of Commerce, Industries, Mines and Agriculture (ICCIMA) Gholam-Hossein Shafeie met with Kazakhstan’s Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Trade and Integration Bakhyt Sultanov on Monday to discuss mutual economic opportunities and challenges.

In this meeting, the two sides explored ways to increase the level of economic cooperation between the two countries, the ICCIMA portal reported.

In this regard, Shafeie stressed the need for resolving transportation issues and facilitating visa issuance for Iranian businessmen as a prerequisite for expanding trade ties between the two sides.

Noting that Kazakhstan, as the largest country in Central Asia, is very important for Iran, the ICCIMA head said: "Over the past few months, we have met with various delegations from Kazakhstan, and this is promising for good developments in trade relations between the two countries in the coming months."

According to Shafeie, the free economy policy in Kazakhstan has provided a good ground for the presence of Iranian traders and businessmen in this country.

Pointing to the obstacles to the development of trade relations between Iran and Kazakhstan, the official said: "One of the main obstacles to developing relations between the two countries is the limitations in rail and sea transport."

Sultanov for his part expressed satisfaction with the current trend of economic relations between the two countries and said: “Despite many problems, we are witnessing the growth of trade relations between the two countries.”

“Last year, trade between the two countries grew by 80 percent. Of course, this rate was mainly due to the improvement in conditions caused by the coronavirus pandemic. Fortunately, in the first three months of 2022, trade between the two countries has also grown by 50 percent to $200 million.”

Heading a high-ranking delegation, Bakhyt Sultanov arrived in Tehran on Sunday with the aim of exploring new opportunities for the expansion of economic relations between the two countries.

During their stay in Tehran, the Kazakh delegates held several meetings with senior Iranian officials including Industry, Mining, and Trade Minister Reza Fatemi-Amin, Governor of the Central Bank of Iran (CBI) Ali Saleh-Abadi, and Managing Director of National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC) Mohsen Khojasteh-Mehr.

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Photo: ICCIMA Head Gholam-Hossein Shafeie (R) and Kazakhstan’s Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Trade and Integration Bakhyt Sultanov