TEHRAN – Iranian Foreign Affairs Ministry hosted a conference on the opportunities for cooperation with the Black Sea Economic Cooperation (BSEC) dubbed “Iran and the 30-year-oil BSEC: Prospects for Cooperation”.

As reported by the portal of the Iran Chamber of Commerce, Industries, Mines and Agriculture (ICCIMA) on Monday, the conference was attended by senior officials including BSEC Secretary General Lazar Comanescu, Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister for Economic Diplomacy Mehdi Safari, UN Resident Coordinator in Iran Stefan Priesner and Secretary-General of Economic Cooperation Organization (ECO) Khosro Nazeri.

Ambassadors of member countries and representatives of Iran and Black Sea coastal countries’ private sectors as well as senior managers and experts from various sectors were also present at the event.

In this conference, the role of chambers of commerce in the development of private sector cooperation of BSEC member countries was emphasized. The attendees stated that such cooperation could lead to the implementation of national development programs in transportation, food security, climate and disaster management, etc.

Speaking in this gathering, Stefan Priesner stressed the significant role of the Islamic Republic of Iran in the region, saying: “We have plans to work with Iran for the next five years and we welcome Iran's cooperation with the Black Sea Economic Cooperation Organization as well.”

“The consequences of the war in Ukraine are global, and the food supply chain is disrupted, and we must focus on peace,” Priesner stated.

Comanescu for his part expressed appreciation for Iran’s initiative to hold this conference and said: "2022 is the 30th anniversary of the organization's establishment and we appreciate Iran's efforts in holding this meeting. Iran has been the organization's most active dialogue partner.”

“This is the first event of its kind and I hope others will follow in Iran's footsteps,” he stressed.

Nazeri also noted that there is good potential for cooperation between ECO and BSEC and expressed hope to see more cooperation between these two organizations in the future.

“We have the Istanbul-Tehran-Islamabad and the Istanbul-Almaty-Bandar Abbas railways, which are very important and we are looking to launch a container train in these lines,” he said.

The Organization of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation is a regional international organization focusing on multilateral political and economic initiatives aimed at fostering cooperation, peace, stability and prosperity in the Black Sea region.

EF/MA