TEHRAN – The head of Iran’s Trade Promotion Organization (TPO) met with Cuba’s ambassador to discuss expanding trade ties, emphasizing the need to update the preferential trade agreement’s product list and accelerate barter trade agreements between the two countries.

According to TPO’s public relations office, Mohammadali Dehghan Dehnavi met with Jorge Fernando Nicolás to review trade cooperation. “We have taken positive steps in our collaboration, but given the high-level political relations between Iran and Cuba, our trade volume must see a significant increase,” Dehnavi stated.

The deputy minister of industry, mining, and trade stressed the need to expand economic cooperation, highlighting potential areas such as modernizing and investing in Cuba’s sugar industry, food production and distribution chains, energy, technical and engineering services, power plant construction and maintenance, water and electricity industries, tourism, mining, and transportation.

Dehnavi noted that Iran has developed aircraft maintenance expertise despite sanctions. “No country has faced as many sanctions as Iran. While the costs have been high, we have found ways to overcome these challenges,” he said.

He invited Cuba’s Minister of Foreign Trade and Investment, the president of Cuba’s Chamber of Commerce, and Cuban companies to participate in Iran Expo 2025.

Ambassador Nicolás praised Iran’s progress despite sanctions and expressed Cuba’s commitment to maintaining trade with its allies. He emphasized Cuba’s interest in continuing trade delegations and collaborating in power generation, transportation, water and electricity industries, food production, rail and air transport, and adopting Iranian technologies in these sectors.

The Cuban envoy also highlighted the membership of both Iran and Cuba in BRICS as an opportunity to expand bilateral trade interactions.

EF/