In the meeting, Motefaker Azad pointed to the historic ties between Iran and South Korea and said that Iran-South Korea Parliamentary Friendship Group has always been seeking bolstering amicable ties with Soul.

He noted that the Islamic Republic of Iran has been disappointed over Soul’s actions in recent years which have led to the decline in the bilateral economic ties. He then pointed to the significance of the parliamentary diplomacy as an effective tool for reinforcing the political relations, adding that ties between the two countries have been always important and the current Majlis is determined to bolster it.

Motefaker Azad then pointed to Iran’s frozen assets in South Korea and said that resolving this problem and unblocking the assets needs double efforts which should be made by South Korean government in order that the credit line with Iran would be implemented immediately.

He added that South Korea has been one of Iran’s reputable and reliable partners in recent years but recent actions especially in the past three years for blocking Iran’s forex resources  have been under the pressure of the U.S. and it has changed Iranian people’s approach towards South Korea.

He then urged South Korean government to remove hurdles in way of Iran’s access to its financial resources in Korean banks.

Then Yun, for his part, called Iran as an important trade partner of his country in the region and said Iran and South Korea have had good relations and interactions for over 60 years.

He reiterated that recent tension in ties between Tehran and Seoul is the U.S. sanctions and expressed hope this problem would be resolved soon.

He termed positive the outlook of relations between the two states and said parliaments of the two countries can pursue the previous paths of cooperation with strength.

The post Seoul’s Blocking of Iran Assets Against International Trade Laws appeared first on Iran News Daily.

Speaking to ILNA, Tanhaei said that sanctions and freezing Iran’s assets have affected the trade ties between Iran and South Korea as the trade volume is currently in its lowest level in the past 15 years.

On the fate of Iran’s frozen funds in South Korea, he said South Koreans most probably would return the money via banks of Woori and IBK, adding that some portion of the money will be paid through purchasing goods and some would be in cash.

He went on to say that based on the recent talks with Seoul, it seems the problem of the frozen assets would be resolved soon and it had direct relation with the result of the nuclear talks in the JCPOA.

Tanhaei noted that South Koreans are trying to keep their relations with Iran and they are planning for Iran’s frozen assets but it is still unknown how they would return the money.

He reiterated that Iran has asked South Korea to return its money in cash or if they want to give goods, it is better they do not give made goods and instead they give us industrial or medical equipment. He admitted that Koreans are still silent on it but it seems they want to give goods in exchange for the money.

Tanhaei added that Iran has received medical products in exchange of some part of its money and it is ready to vaccine in exchange of the remaining part of the money.

He expressed hope South Koreans give Iran medical, petrochemical and chemical equipment which will help the country to have better investment for the future.

The post Tehran-Seoul Trade Hits Record Low in 15 Years appeared first on Iran News Daily.

The trade ministry has completed nearly all procedures for the removal of Japan from its list of nations given favored export procedures for “operating an export control system that violates international norms,” according to South Korea’s Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, Yonhap news agency reported.

The move follows Japan’s removal of South Korea from its own whitelist of nations given preferential export treatment on Aug. 28.

South Korea plans to classify its trading partners into three groups from the current two, placing Tokyo in the in-between group.

Once implemented, local companies shipping strategic goods to Japan will have to hand in five different documents to win individual approval, which is two more than the current three. The approval process will also take around 15 days, which will be significantly longer than the current five.

South Korea is also still willing to talk with Japan anytime even after the new policy is implemented, according to the ministry.

In a separate action, South Korea filed a complaint with the World Trade Organization (WTO) on Wednesday over Japan’s curbs of exporting key industrial materials to Seoul.

The complaint, however, will not cover Japan’s removal of South Korea from trusted trading partners.

The latest step came as Japan’s export restrictions targeting only South Korea is a discriminatory, politically motivated act.

Tokyo’s move is widely seen as a retaliation against a verdict by a Seoul court last year that ordered Japanese firms to compensate Korean victims for their wartime forced labor.

The post Seoul to Drop Tokyo from Whitelist This Week appeared first on Iran News Daily.

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