TEHRAN (Iran News) –Iranian Minister of Industry, Mine and Trade said that Tehran and Minsk will launch combined flights in short term.
Speaking in his meeting with Belarussian Minister of Transport and Communications Aleksei Avramenko on Saturday, Seyyed Reza Fatemi Amin stated that it may be impossible to activate the direct flights between the two countries in the short term but combined flights can be planned in the short term.
In his two-day visit to Belarus, Iranian industry minister met and held talks with Belarussian ministers and managers to broaden bilateral ties.
The two countries of Iran and Belarus enjoy high potentials and capabilities to expand their ties in various fields, Fatemi Amin added.
The Iranian minister added: “There is a possibility of increasing the current exchanges between the two countries, many negotiations were held with large Belarusian companies, which will serve as the infrastructure of all these transportation interactions.”
He also noted: “Different Iranian companies have invested in Belarus in different fields, and this presence of investors in the two countries facilitates trade.”
Belarussian minister of transport, for his part, appreciated Iran’s effort to compile proper rules in increasing bilateral trade between the two countries.
Stating that the two countries of Iran and Belarus are negotiating with each other in the fields of construction of roads and railway and also launch of bilateral flights, Avramenko said that that North-South Corridor to access to sea is very important and stable agreements must be compiled in this regard.
The Belarussian transport minister appreciated position of the Islamic Republic of Iran for enacting proper and strategic rules in increasing volume of bilateral trade and emphasized that Belarus intends to active air transportation with the Islamic Republic of Iran.
In this meeting, the Minister of Roads of Belarus stated that cooperation in the field of roads, railways, flights between the two countries and some agreements regarding transportation are already underway, adding that the north-south corridor for access to the sea is very important.
“In this context, we must have stable agreements in the field of transportation,” concluded he.
On Friday and during an interview Fatemi Amin said negotiations have been held between Iran and Belarus to increase the value of annual trade from $40 million to $1 billion.
“We have negotiated on the trade volume of $1 billion. Right now the capacity of ties between the two sides is $40 million due to lack of good connections,” he told Press TV in a live interview.
Pointing to the capacities of Belarus in manufacturing mineral and agricultural equipment, he said Iran is in need of such machines and that initial agreements have been reached to receive the needed equipment from Belarus.
On the other hand, the minister said, Iran has capacities in manufacturing cars and medicine that can meet the needs of Belarus. According to him, an Iranian medical company started its activities in the European country on Thursday.
Fatemi Amin also said Iran can act as a suitable path for Belarus to access markets of Southeast Asian countries.
The level of ties can be improved in various fields such as industrial and agricultural machinery, which can help the sides reach the defined target, he said. The two countries have achieved a “good understanding” of the capacities of the other side, the minister said.
Elsewhere, answering a question about the effects of sanctions, the Iranian minister said sanctions act as a hindrance but cannot stop the activities; and such embargos will even have positive effects in the long run.
Iran managed to register a $120-billion trade volume last year under severe economic sanctions, he said, adding that remaining steadfast under pressure will eventually put the country in a better position.
Pointing to the sanctions imposed on Belarus, the minister said Tehran and Minsk can fulfill the needs of one another in a host of areas.
