TEHRAN - A high-ranking economic delegation from Kyrgyzstan, led by Deputy Foreign Minister Temirbek Erkinov, met with Ali Akbar Safaei, Iran's Deputy Minister of Transport and Urban Development and head of the Ports and Maritime Organization (PMO), to discuss establishing a joint Eurasian logistics hub in Iran’s southern ports.

According to a statement from the PMO, the Kyrgyz delegation—comprising senior officials including Deputy Transport Minister Almaz Turgunbaev, Deputy Economy and Commerce Minister Nazarbek Malaev, and Deputy Justice Minister Orozbek Sidikov—traveled to Tehran to explore investment opportunities in a special logistics zone at Iran's Shahid Rajaei Port.

During the meeting, Erkinov emphasized Kyrgyzstan's strategic need for maritime access due to its landlocked geography, highlighting that utilizing Iranian commercial ports is a key priority for Bishkek to enhance transit and maritime trade ties with Tehran.

“The negotiations to facilitate Kyrgyzstan’s investment and transit operations through Shahid Rajaei Port began some time ago,” Erkinov said. “We are ready to collaborate with Iran to execute a joint logistics zone project in the port.”

He added that any Kyrgyz investments in Iran would fully adhere to Iranian laws and regulations, stressing the potential for commercial partnerships to establish a regional transit and logistics hub in line with multi-modal transport corridors.

Safaei, head of the PMO, welcomed Kyrgyz investments, noting that Iran supports all investments in its free economic and port zones. “Kyrgyz private sector investments in Iran’s northern and southern ports will receive significant incentives and facilities,” he said.

He further stated that Kyrgyz traders could leverage Iranian port infrastructure and shipping lines to access global markets. “The Iranian government’s strategy focuses on strengthening economic relations with neighboring countries. Iran has existing cooperation agreements with both western and eastern Caspian Sea nations and is rapidly developing its road and rail corridors,” Safaei added.

The meeting included Iranian officials from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Customs Administration, and the Presidential Office, as well as representatives from the Ports and Maritime Organization.

Meanwhile in an online meeting between Head of Hormozagn Province’s Ports and Maritime Department Hossein Abbas-Nejad and Kyrgyzstan’s Deputy Economy and Commerce Minister Nazarbek Kamaldinovich, on August 20, the two sides discussed ways of expanding cooperation in ports and transit sectors.

As PMO portal reported, the virtual meeting was held at the request of the Ministry of Economy and Commerce of Kyrgyzstan on Monday with the aim of increasing transit cooperation between the two countries.

In this meeting, the parties discussed and exchanged opinions regarding the participation and investment of the private sector of Kyrgyzstan in the infrastructure projects of Iranian ports, especially Shahid Rajaee port.

In this regard, Abbas-Nejad welcomed the presence of the Kyrgyz private sector to establish a logistics center in Shahid Rajaee Port, and it was decided that the issue will be further and more thoroughly discussed and finalized in the near future during the visit of a Kyrgyz technical delegation to Iran.

Kamaldinovich for his part expressed Kyrgyzstan’s readiness to send a specialized delegation to Iran, and called on the Iranian side to speed up and facilitate the process of the presence of Kyrgyz investors and their participation in the infrastructure projects of Shahid Rajaee port with the aim of facilitating the transit of Kyrgyz goods from the territory of Iran.

Back in July, Iran's PMO and the National Investments Agency of Kyrgyzstan agreed on a memorandum of understanding (MOU) for the development of the southern ports of Iran.

The MOU was agreed upon also during an online meeting between the officials of the two countries.

In the virtual meeting, the two sides reviewed and approved the contents of the MOU regarding the participation of Kyrgyzstan's private sector in the southern ports of Iran.

The draft of the aforementioned MOU was decided to be signed by the parties during the visit of Kyrgyzstan's delegation to Tehran shortly.

EF/MA