President of Iran Chamber of Commerce, Industries, Mines, and Agriculture (ICCIMA) Gholam Hossein Shafei underlined the need for the removal of rail and maritime transportation obstacles between Iran and Kazakhstan.
Shafei made the remarks during a meeting in Tehran on Monday with Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Trade and Integration of Kazakhstan Bakhyt Sultanov.
Noting that Kazakhstan as the biggest Central Asian country is of special significance for Iran, the Iran Chamber of Commerce chief said, “we met with different delegations from Kazakhstan over the past months which is promising of good news in trade relations between the two countries over the next months.”
Shafei referred to problems on the way of maritime transportation between Iran and Kazakhstan and said that “we are lacking enough RoRo ships for transportation between the two countries.”
He also said that a large part of problems on the way of rail transportation between Iran and Kazakhstan is related to the countries placed on the route of this rail transport.
Shafei added that one of the other issues hindering trade between Iran and Kazakhstan is Nur-Sultan’s tough visa issuance rules for Iranian businesspersons. He called on Kazakhstan’s government to take the needed measures to solve this problem as a primary step for expansion of bilateral trade relations.
The Iran Chamber of Commerce president said that the Iranian private sector has the full support of the government for further expansion of ties with Kazakhstan.
A number of main Iranian businesspersons and visiting Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Trade and Integration of Kazakhstan Bakhyt Sultanov pose for a photo in Tehran, Iran May 23, 2022.
In the meantime, the Kazakh deputy prime minister said that the level of trade between the two countries surged by 80% last year which was mainly due to an ease in COVID restrictions.
Sultanov added that bilateral trade between Iran and Kazakhstan also registered a 50% growth in the first quarter of 2022, reaching $200 million in the three-month period.
He said that an annual $3 billion is achievable which requires planning by both governments.
One of the main steps that has to be done is to launch a mirror joint chamber of commerce in Kazakhstan, the Kazakh senior official said.
Sultanov also proposed for holding a joint trade meeting between the two countries with the presence of the presidents of both countries.
He said that he will pursue a call by Iranian private sector for establishment of weekly flight between the two countries.
Noting that the Iranian businesspersons can now reside for 72 hours in Kazakhstan without the need for visa, adding that it is not enough but is regarded as a small step forward.