TEHRAN – The board of directors of the Iran-Canada Joint Chamber of Commerce gathered at the Iran Chamber of Commerce, Industries, Mines, and Agriculture (ICCIMA) to discuss ways of reviving trade relations between the two countries, ICCIMA portal reported on Friday.

During the meeting, the attendees offered three proposals for the resumption of trade relations between the two sides, including the establishment of a think tank comprised of the Iran-Canada Joint Chamber board members, introducing an advisor from the joint chamber to the Canadian government, and finally sending a delegation from Iran to visit Canada.

Speaking in the meeting, Ala Mirmohammad-Sadeghi, Chairman of the Iran-Canada Joint Chamber, said the Iran-Canada Chamber is one of the oldest chambers in Iran that has developed and pursued Iran's trade policy in this country.

According to the official, the chamber has sent numerous business delegations from Iran to Canada and reciprocally hosted delegations from Canada.

“Unfortunately, over the last year, with the stagnation in the political atmosphere between the governments of Iran and Canada, commercial activities have also diminished,” Mirmohammad-Sadeghi regretted.

“Canada has an extraordinary advantage for Iran compared to other countries, and that is the presence of many Iranians with good business opportunities in Canada. We would like the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to state its policy in this regard so that the Iran-Canada Chamber can pursue its trade goals within the framework of this policy,” he added.

Stating that the Iran-Canada Chamber has more than 500 members, he said: "Unfortunately, due to the situation between Iran and Canada in the past year, only about 100 members and owners of businesses residing in Iran have been able to do business; We expect the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to take the necessary measures so that the Joint Chamber can use the capacity of Iranians in Canada like the previous years.”

Further in the meeting, Mohammad Reza Karbasi, ICCIMA deputy head for international affairs, stated that the Iran-Canada Chamber of Commerce used to receive two or three Canadian business delegations annually and held important trade fairs and seminars in this country.

"Unfortunately, due to the political reasons at the moment, although these trade relations have not been completely cut off, they are done through third countries, which leads to increased costs," he said.

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Photo: ICCIMA Deputy Head Mohammad Reza Karbasi (R) and Ala Mirmohammad-Sadeghi (L) Chairman of the Iran-Canada Joint Chamber