Minister: Iran, Saudi Arabia have resumed trade
Iran’s Minister of Industries, Mines and Trade Seyyed Reza Fatemi Amin said that Iran and Saudi Arabia have begun trade relations after the two countries recently agreed to restore diplomatic ties.
In an interview with IRNA, Fatemi Amin said that Iran had begun the process of exporting goods to Saudi Arabia after a Chinese-brokered thaw in relations between the two countries.
Recently, a senior Iranian businessman said Iran and Saudi Arabia plan to form a joint chamber of commerce to boost bilateral trade.
Keyvan Kashefi, a member of the presiding board of Iran Chamber of Commerce, Industries, Mines and Agriculture (ICCIMA), said that the private sector in Iran has already started planning for increased trade relations with businesses in Saudi Arabia.
Top security officials from Iran and Saudi Arabia reached an agreement in the Chinese capital Beijing in early March to restore diplomatic relations between the two countries after seven years. The agreement stipulated that Iran and Saudi Arabia would reopen their embassies within two months, to allow a full normalization of ties.
Kashefi said ICCIMA’s initiative to set up the Iran-Saudi Arabia Joint Chamber of Commerce will be a major step toward the advancement of economic cooperation between the two countries.