TEHRAN- Head of Iran Chamber of Guilds Mojtaba Safaei hosted a meeting with Abdullah bin Saud al-Anzi, Saudi Arabia’s new Ambassador to Tehran, on Saturday evening, in which the officials discussed ways of expanding trade relations between the two countries.

As the portal of the chamber reported, in this meeting, which was held at the invitation of the head of the Iran Chamber of Guilds, some of the heads of Tehran unions were also present and discussed Iran's export capabilities.

Speaking in this gathering, Safaei said, “We know well that strengthening relations with Saudi Arabia is of interest to Iran. As the Leader of the Islamic Revolution said in his recent meeting with the Sultan of Oman, establishing relations with Saudi Arabia was the result of the correct policy of the government of President Raisi, and we, in pursuit of the implementation of these policies, consider this meeting as an advantage and aim to have a positive impact in this regard.”

He said, “According to investigations, the majority of Iran and Saudi Arabia's exports and imports in recent years have been carried out by professional companies, but with the diplomatic relations gap, they have reached to the minimum possible level. Today, the private sector and professional enterprises are ready to cooperate with Saudi Arabia in trade.”

The head of Iran Chamber of Guilds went on to say: “We believe that Iran and Saudi Arabia are two major poles of the Islamic world, and this gap has damaged the economies of both countries more than anything else, which is what the global arrogance wanted. Nevertheless, we have very extensive collaborations, and in the field of trade, the chamber of guilds will open a new chapter of relations with Saudi Arabia today, with God's help."

“We know that Saudi Arabia is looking to build the largest and most intelligent city in the world, and in this regard, Iran's industries are ready to help in various fields of trade, mining, building materials, and so on. Some industries such as Persian carpet, leather bags, shoes, and products have the potential to make an ascending move in the export phase to Saudi Arabia within a week, because they are competitive with European countries with the highest quality in the market. Furthermore, medical equipment, food and handicrafts are also available”, Safaei continued and said, “In addition to this, we are pushing for cooperation in building hotels, properties, and tourism infrastructure with Saudi Arabia.”

“Since technical and engineering services and skilled labor are cheaper in our country, Saudi Arabia can invest in these areas, and our demands are not one-sided and must be bilateral”, he noted, adding, “Therefore, we propose trade facilitation, and in this regard, it is necessary to form a specialized working group to achieve desirable results from this meeting. This working group can deal with different fields in a specialized way and demonstrate the commercial goals at an excellent level between the authorities of both countries.”

The Saudi ambassador to Iran, for his part, said, “God willing, the relationship and interest between Iran and Saudi Arabia will be stable, and good capacity will be created for the trade of both countries.”

The private sector plays an essential role in both countries. The Saudi economy is open and prone to development, and the crown prince has a vision for 2030 and many projects for the progress of Saudi Arabia will be done, which is not just for Saudi Arabia but will be a blessing for all regional countries, the envoy added.

He added: “The Islamic Republic of Iran is a very important neighboring country and has many potentials and has a good strategic position. Therefore, its development with Saudi Arabia will create an opportunity for an equal economy."

The Saudi ambassador said: “Both countries have very relative advantages and dynamic economies that we can have joint projects. In Saudi Arabia, there are trade booths, and we can have more interactions by signing contracts between private companies, and in this regard, we will have joint meetings with Iran Chamber of Guilds."

At this meeting, it was decided that both sides would introduce representatives to examine the trade capacities of both countries.

During a meeting between Iran’s Finance and Economic Affairs Minister Ehsan Khandouzi and Saudi Arabia’s Finance Minister Mohammed Al-Jadaan, in mid-May, the two sides discussed the ways to expand economic cooperation and remove the barriers in the way of trade between the two countries.

In the meeting, which was held on the sidelines of the annual meeting of the board of executive directors of the Islamic Development Bank (IsDB) in Jeddah, the Saudi Arabian minister expressed satisfaction with the re-establishment of relations between Iran and Saudi Arabia and said: “We hope that quick steps will be taken in relations with Iran.”

“In this regard, it is necessary to remove the economic and trade barriers against the two countries”, he stressed.

The Iranian minister for his part welcomed the progress of economic relations between the two countries and stated that the development of relations is important not only for Iran and Saudi Arabia but also for all countries in the region.

Stating that it is the duty of governments to facilitate economic ties, Khandouzi said these bilateral relations are very important not only from an economic point of view but also in the political and security fields.

Explaining Iran's program in the field of economic relations with Saudi Arabia, Khandouzi said: “At the government level, Iran and Saudi Arabia have not finalized any basic agreement in the field of investment, customs, and trade. In this regard, it is necessary to draw up and sign MOUs between the parties.”

The Saudi Arabian side, while agreeing to cooperate in the three fields of customs, trade, and investment, expressed hope that with the assistance of his country’s ministries, cooperation in the mentioned fields will be followed up.

EF/MA

Photo: Head of Iran Chamber of Guilds Mojtaba Safaei (R) and Saudi Arabia Ambassador to Tehran Abdullah bin Saud al-Anzi