TEHRAN—Iranian Agriculture Minister Gholamreza Nouri Ghezeljeh and Kyrgyzstan’s Ambassador in Tehran Tordogan Sedigov have stressed the need to expand economic ties between the two countries.

As reported by the portal of the Agriculture Ministry, in a meeting in Tehran, Nouri Ghezeljeh underlined the 14th meeting of the two countries’ Joint Economic Committee as a good opportunity to expand the relations between Tehran and Bishkek and emphasized the implementation of the previously reached agreements to provide the basis for new cooperation.

He further mentioned the close political relations between Iran and Kyrgyzstan, saying: “The cooperation between Tehran and Bishkek in ECO and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation shows the common vision and close international goals of the two countries.”

In response to the request of the Kyrgyz ambassador regarding his country's need for livestock medicine and vaccines, Nouri Ghezeljeh said: “Iran’s Razi Vaccine and Serum Institute is ready to provide a large part of Kyrgyzstan's need for livestock medicine.”

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, in mid-August, the two sides discussed ways of expanding cooperation in ports and transit sectors.

The virtual meeting was held at the request of the Ministry of Economy and Commerce of Kyrgyzstan 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 Ports and Maritime Organization (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.

Also, during a meeting between former Iranian Minister of Energy Ali-Akbar Mehrabian and his Kyrgyz counterpart Taalaibek Ibrayev in late July, the two sides voiced readiness to cooperate in the field of energy and implementation of hydroelectric projects.

The two ministers met on the sidelines of a ministerial meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) member countries.

Speaking during the meeting, the Iranian minister said that the future of relations between Iran and Kyrgyzstan is bright, noting that Tehran is ready for any cooperation with Bishkek.

Mehrabian referred to Iran’s huge energy potential and said that the country generates some 360 terawatt/h of electricity annually.

The Kyrgyz minister, for his part, appreciated Iran’s capacities in the production and supply of oil and oil products, while adding that his country has good experience in constructing hydroelectric and small-scale power plants.

In the meeting, Mehrabian voiced the readiness of the Islamic Republic of Iran to export technical and engineering services, as well as supply equipment in the energy sector.

The Iranian energy minister pointed out that connecting the electricity grid of Uzbekistan to Turkmenistan and then Iran will enable the exchange of electricity for the countries of the region, especially during the peak consumption period of summer and winter.

EF/MA