International trade Archives - Iran News Daily

Gov’t Prioritizes Facilitating International Trade in 14th Administration

siavash — Sun, 27 Jul 2025 13:02:04 +0000

Gov’t Prioritizes Facilitating International Trade in 14th Administration

TEHRAN (Iran News) Speaking at a meeting with economic stakeholders in West Azerbaijan province, Minister Seyed Mohammad Atabak highlighted the government’s new approach. “The 14th administration has prioritized operationalizing international trade agreements,” he said, underscoring the need to capitalize on the province’s geographical advantages.

Atabak called for the resolution of customs-related issues and improvements in the process of issuing business licenses, arguing that the border advantages of West Azerbaijan have not been fully utilized.

He also pointed to the province’s limited contribution to industrial employment, revealing that there are over 2,400 incomplete industrial projects in West Azerbaijan. “These dormant projects are lowering the province’s value-added output,” he warned.

Referring to West Azerbaijan’s unique geopolitical position, bordering three countries, Atabak emphasized the need to boost the province’s trade share and ensure smoother commerce operations. He also noted that border service systems have recently been reactivated to support this effort. He further stressed the importance of upgrading the region’s road infrastructure.

In the same meeting, Qasem Karimi, head of the Urmia Chamber of Commerce, called for increased provincial authority to streamline industrial processes and address critical barriers faced by local businesses.

Karimi emphasized the need to empower the provincial directorate of the Industry Ministry with greater decision-making powers regarding small and medium-sized enterprises. He also criticized the bureaucratic hurdles faced by industrial units seeking machinery upgrades, noting their direct impact on competitiveness and productivity.

To enhance private-sector collaboration with industrial towns, Karimi proposed that a chamber representative be included in the executive boards of industrial parks.

He further urged the government to allow exporters to fulfill their foreign exchange obligations through local currency settlements by the end of the Iranian calendar year 1402 (March 2024). Karimi also warned about the rise of “single-use” trade licenses and stressed the need for stricter oversight and revised regulations.

Karimi drew attention to the need for improved commercial diplomacy, noting that Turkey has over 250 trade attachés while Iran only maintains 25 active ones. He called for strengthening this network and fostering direct interaction with the private sector.

He also urged large industrial firms to move their operational accounts from Tehran to local bank branches in West Azerbaijan to boost the region’s liquidity and lending capacity. Karimi recommended installment plans for mining royalties to support continued operations in the sector.

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Door to International Cooperation on Transportation Is Open

reporter 1222 — Sat, 07 Dec 2019 12:00:59 +0000

TEHRAN (Iran News) – Iran’s Deputy Minister of Road and Urban Development for Transportation Shahram said that Iran is open to expanding regional and international cooperation on transportation, adding that Tehran sees such a strategy as an opportunity.

Addressing the 14th Meeting of the Intergovernmental Commission Transport Corridor Europe-Caucasus-Asia (TRACECA) in Baku on Friday, Adamnejad said that Iran is prepared to forge effective interactions in line with resolving special issues relating to transportation with the other countries

Referring to the strategy of developing TRACECA during 2016-2021, he added that Iran believes that the strategy is an opportunity for boosting cooperation among the countries engaged in the project.

The Iranian official further noted that his country is present in the meeting with the approach of fostering transportation diplomacy, as its special geographical location has turned it into a linking road for TRACECA member states to the Persian Gulf, Black Sea, and Central Asia.

Adamnejd also hoped that TRACECA member states would strengthen cooperation and convergence with Iran to find out ways for increasing international transportation and transit through the safe and secure country of Iran.

“We believe in common interests with TRACECA member states and act on the basis of win-win approach in transportation ties and attracting capitals for projects,” he said.

The 14th Meeting of the Intergovernmental Commission Transport Corridor Europe-Caucasus-Asia (TRACECA) attended by representatives of 13 countries, including Iran, was held in Baku on Friday.

Iran is firmly after expanding transportation cooperation with neighboring countries, as well as other countries.

On Tuesday, Managing Director of Iran’s Ports and Maritime Organization Mohammad Rastad and Head of Russia’s Federal Agency for Maritime and River Transportation Yury Tsvetkov in a meeting agreed to expand the cooperation between the two countries in the Caspian Sea.

Early in October, the Iranian Minister of Road and Urban Development Mohammad Eslami and Armenia’s Deputy Prime Minister Mher Grigoryan in a meeting in Yerevan discussed mutual cooperation in the field of rail and road transportation.

In September, Iranian President’s Chief of Staff Mahmoud Vaezi said that his country and Turkey will increase their transportation cooperation by establishing a rail route between Tehran and Istanbul.

Speaking in Ankara, Vaezi announced that Tehran-Istanbul train will come on stream in the near future, adding that the 27th Iran-Turkey Joint Economic Cooperation Commission will be held at the respective ministerial level. The commission opened on Monday.

Next week, the Iranian capital city of Tehran will host The 4th edition of the Logistics, Transportation, and Related Industries Exhibition of Asia (Asia Logitrans Expo. 2019) from December 15 to 17, 2019.

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