TEHRAN (Iran News) – Iranian Transport and Urban Development Minister Mohammad Eslami held talks with the Chairman of the Supreme Assembly of the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic Vasif Talibov on Tuesday to explore avenues for expansion of economic and transport ties.
As reported by the Transport Ministry’s news portal, in this meeting, which was attended by Azerbaijan’s Deputy Prime Minister Shahin Mustafayev and transport officials from both sides, the attendees expressed satisfaction with the upward trend of cooperation between the two neighboring countries.
Addressing the event, Talibov said the Islamic Republic of Iran and Azerbaijan have always had close friendship and cooperation, and now conditions are ripe for further expansion of this cooperation.
“Nakhchivan has made all the necessary investments in the railway and road sectors, and therefore a window has been opened for the countries in the region to use this opportunity for increasing their communication and trade exchanges,” the official noted.
Eslami for his part noted that cooperation between Iran and Azerbaijan is in the interest of all countries in the region, adding: “The Islamic Republic of Iran is ready to cooperate with Nakhchivan and the Republic of Azerbaijan in various fields.”
During the meeting, the officials also discussed cooperation in the fields of energy, rail transport and the completion of the Nakhchivan-Mashhad railway, and connecting Nakhchivan with other regions of Azerbaijan through the Islamic Republic of Iran.
The two sides decided to establish specialized working groups to follow up on the above-mentioned issues.
The Iranian minister, along with Shahin Mustafayev, also visited Jolfa terminal on border with Azerbaijan and several other industrial areas in the mentioned country.
During this visit, while emphasizing the need to promote Jolfa terminal, Eslami stressed the two countries’ efforts and interest for expansion of trade and logistics cooperation especially in north-south corridor.
According to Eslami, considering the developments in the region and the trilateral agreement among Russia, Azerbaijan and Armenia, the activation of the Tabriz-Nakhchivan railway through Azerbaijan and Russia is on the Iranian Transport Ministry’s agenda, which will expand the trade capacities of Iran and Azerbaijan as well as the countries in the region.
The official further stated that Iran and Azerbaijan have numerous opportunities and great potential for playing an effective role in the Black Sea and Persian Gulf corridors, saying: “Both Iran and Azerbaijan are eager for realizing these capacities.”
He expressed hope that Shahin Mostafayev’s recent visit to Tehran and Eslami’s visit to Baku could be a turning point in identifying potential areas for cooperation, the challenges in the way of trade and joint investment opportunities of the two countries.
Heading a delegation, Iranian Transport Minister Mohammad Eslami arrived in Azerbaijan on Tuesday for meeting with local officials and discussing expansion of ties especially in transportation.
