Iran-Eurasia trade is increasing: MP
By Sadeq Dehqan
Staff writer
Referring to the increasing trade between Iran and Eurasian states, the vice chairman of the Agriculture Committee of Parliament said that grains and agricultural products form a major part of the exchanges.
In an interview with Iran Daily, Rahmatollah Norouzi noted, “Currently, a major part of Eurasia’s exports to Iran are agricultural products, especially grains, and a large part of Iran’s exports to Eurasian countries are also agricultural products.
Pointing to the northern provinces as the hub of the production of many agricultural products in Iran, he explained, “One of the programs on the agenda is to increase the export of agricultural products from the northern provinces to Eurasian countries.”
Regarding the necessity of speeding up the process of setting up the Inchehborun Free Zone in the north of Golestan Province, which is on the border of Turkmenistan, Norouzi said, “The free zone, which is in the final stages of being set up, can be an important port for the country’s exports.”
“Considering the location of Golestan Province as the gateway to Eurasian countries, the use of the capacities of the free zone can give Iran access to the several-hundred-million-strong market of the Eurasian region.”
We enjoy a very good capacity in the field of exporting agricultural products in the northern provinces, and the three northern provinces of Golestan, Mazandaran and Gilan, due to their proximity to Eurasian countries, can use the capacity to generate income for the country.
Norouzi added, “Eurasian countries and our other export destinations in neighboring countries, including Iraq and Afghanistan, are a very good market and opportunity for us, which can be used in the current condition of sanctions.”
Referring to the importance of producing agricultural products, the MP said, “We must boost the production of agricultural products because, in today’s world, the issue of food security is considered very important; especially, the war between Ukraine and Russia has shown that food security is a basic priority of all countries.”
“Fortunately, Iran has very good capacities in terms of providing food security for itself and other countries, but it has not done well in the field of exploiting this capacity in the way of exporting to Eurasian countries.”
The economy of the northern provinces of the country is based on the cultivation of agricultural products, but the creation of conversion industries in these provinces has not been completed in line with the agricultural capacities, he claimed.