Iran and Sweden have decided to develop a new business roadmap that would accelerate economic cooperation between the two countries, says Iran Chamber of Commerce president.
Mohsen Jalalpour, head of Iran's Chamber of Commerce, Industries, Mines and Agriculture, announced on Wednesday that the decision has been finalized in his meeting with Ylva Berg, head of the Swedish trade and investment council Business Sweden.
“The Swedish side is eager to boost bilateral cooperation and investment and the new roadmap will help illustrate potential grounds,” Jalalpour said.
Iran Chamber of Commerce president further announced that the Business Sweden is schedules to open its office in Tehran by September. A delegation from Sweden’s medical equipment, transportation, food and auto-part manufacturing industries will also visit Tehran in the coming months as the first group of such teams, he said.
During the meeting, Mohammad Reza Ansari, Iran Chamber vice president and Farhad Sharif, Iran Chamber international deputy, and Cherif Sayed, Business Sweden vice president for the Middle East and Africa also discussed bilateral cooperation between the two organizations which are considered as representatives of the private sectors in Iran and Sweden.
Jalapour and his team are accompanying Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif who is leading the Iranian politico-economic delegation to four European countries of Poland, Finland, Sweden and Latvia. The Iranian delegation attended the Finland-Iran Business Forum on Tuesday evening on the second leg of their European tour. They had visited Polish business counterparts at the Polish-Iranian Economic Forum on Monday evening in Warsaw.
Swedish-Iranian business forum
The Swedish-Iranian Business Forum was opened on Wednesday at Stockholm Sheraton Hotel with presence of a total of 170 Swedish companies in business talk with the 60-member delegation of Iranian business people.
Speaking at the meeting, Foreign Minister Zarif reassured all countries that Iran is the safest partner in economic cooperation in the Middle East. He said the presence of Iranian and Swedish private sectors in the forum is an indication for the vast opportunities in developing economic coopearion between the two nations.
Zarif further maintained that Iranian youth are highly skilled in various fields of ICT, pharmaceuticals and nuclear sciences which have been achieved through domestic knowledge and expertise. “During the process of nuclear negotiations we showed our full commitment to our obligations, and I hope with cooperation between trade delegations we can move beyond this limit and reap further benefits from the nuclear deal,” Zarif said.
Official data shows the value of Iranian exports to Sweden stood at USD15 million while the imports were at USD346 million in 2014. During recent years the trade volume between the two countries has dropped severely to one fourth.
Speaking at the forum Iran Chamber President Mohsen Jalalpour said: “The current amount of trade between Iran and Sweden is not proper and we need to increase bilateral trade.” Jalalpour further said that following the implementation of the landmark nuclear agreement reached between Iran and the P5+1 group of countries in July 2014, Iran has planned for a growth rate of 8 percent and that the Iranian side is ready for an investment of 100 billion dollars.
Jalalpour hailed the 100 Swedish companies active in Iran which “didn’t left despite international sanctions”. He also mentioned the 120-year “peaceful” relations between Iran and the Kingdom of Sweden saying, more than 120 thousand Swedish people are currently residing in Iran which is an indication of deep relation between the two nations.
The Iranian delegation makes a visit to Latvia on Thursday as the fourth and last leg of its European tour.