President of Iran Chamber of Commerce, Industries, Mines, and Agriculture (ICCIMA) Gholam Hossein Shafei said on Monday that the chambers of commerce of Iran and Syria need to set out long-term strategic plans for expansion of economic relations.
Shafei made the remarks during a meeting in Tehran with a visiting Syrian trade delegation.
Referring to cordial relations between Iran and Syria, Shafei regretted that economic relations between the two counties are lagging behind political relations.
He noted that economic relations between Tehran and Damascus should not be merely focused on barter trade.
Shafei also referred to problems of the way of transportation as well as customs issues, noting that Iran-Syria Joint Chamber of Commerce has carried out a study on these issues and can present their proposal in this regard.
In the meantime, President of the Federation of Syrian Chambers of Commerce Muhammad Abu Al-Huda Al-Lahham, who headed the Syrian delegation to Tehran, expressed his country’s resolve to do its part to help remove the obstacles on the way of bilateral relations.
Referring to Iran’s waiver of visa requirements for Syrian businesspeople, he said that the scheme can lead to further enhancement of relations between the two countries.
Al-Lahham said that Iran and Syria need to reach different agreements on different areas, including customs issues.
Both Iran and Syria are facing brutal sanctions which requires more economic cooperation between the two countries, he noted.