ECO members stress ease of goods transit via Iran: Raisi
Iran to chair ECO next year
Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi said that at the meeting of the Economic Cooperation Organization (ECO), the transit of goods through the Islamic Republic of Iran was emphasized, adding that half of the ECO members emphasized that Iran is a cheap way to transport goods and save time.
After a two-day trip to Tajikistan and Uzbekistan, President Raisi returned to Tehran on Thursday night with the welcome of the First Vice President and the Deputy for International Affairs of the Office of the Leader, IRNA reported.
Regarding the results and achievements of the trip to Tajikistan and Uzbekistan, he said that ECO is an important organization for communication between ECO members, and in this summit, at first, they presented a report on what has been done in the past and plans for future actions were proposed.
He went on to point out that transit and trade facilitation, especially for intra-regional trade, was one of the important issues raised in this summit, and noted that the issue of customs facilitation was one of the other issues raised in this summit.
“Environment and attention to science and new technologies and tourism were also among other topics and all the member countries expressed their views on economic issues,” he added.
The Iranian president stated that in this meeting, the cooperation of the members was emphasized more than in the past, and the transit of goods through the Islamic Republic of Iran.
“Half of the members mentioned in their speeches that Iran is a cheap route and saves time,” he added.
Meetings with counterparts
The president went on to say that the visit to Tajikistan was a strategic document and 18 cooperation agreements were signed.”
He said that the people and the government of Tajikistan, due to their common civilization and culture, have the will to cooperate with Iran in various fields.
Referring to his meetings with the participating presidents on the sidelines of this summit, Raisi said: “We had meetings with the presidents of Turkey, Azerbaijan and Uzbekistan. Although bilateral relations were discussed in the working meeting with Mr. Erdogan, the issue of Palestine overshadowed other issues.”
He continued, “Mr. Erdogan’s positions on Palestine in the ECO summit were good and I emphasized that these positions are not enough and should be implemented and should have preventive measures. For deterrence, I mentioned the Leader’s solution, which is aimed at cutting ties with the Zionist regime.”
In a meeting in Tashkent on Thursday, the Iranian and Turkish presidents discussed relations between their countries, with Raisi describing them as developing.
The Iranian president pointed the oil and gas sector as one of the two countries’ preferred areas of cooperation, adding that Iran enjoys very good capabilities in the energy sector, so the two countries could take more effective steps in this area.
In another meeting with his Azeri counterpart Ilham Aliyev in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, the Iranian president said that Iran-Azerbaijan relations are beyond political and neighborly ties, and are based on a deep and inseparable bond.
Officials of the two countries are also determined to further expand those relations in different fields, he added.
Raisi also emphasized Iran’s support for Azerbaijan’s territorial integrity including the Nagorno-Karabakh region, noting that the two countries are expanding their ties despite plots by enemies and ill-wishers, which have failed.
Aliyev said that it is of key importance that officials of the two countries are determined to deepen bilateral ties, adding that attempts by certain states to create problems in Tehran-Baku relations have failed.
He also expressed gratitude towards Iran for its support of Azerbaijan’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.
Iran’s 2024 chairmanship
Speaking on the sidelines of the event, Secretary General of ECO Khusrav Noziri announced that Iran will head the organization in 2024.
The next meeting of the heads of member states of the organization will be held in Azerbaijan in 2025, Noziri added.
The ECO secretary general prioritized new initiatives that directly contribute to the regional connectivity.
“These are, namely, Tajikistan-Uzbekistan-Turkmenistan-Iran-Turkey (TUTIT) multimodal corridor, and the Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan-Turkmenistan- Iran-Turkey (KUTIT) corridor that will hopefully contribute to the development of transport relations in the region,” he explained.
ECO is a successful and promising regional organization, and Iran, as one of the founding countries of the organization, has a serious interest in strengthening intra-regional cooperation and promoting the position of ECO as an effective regional mechanism for economic connectivity.
The international position of the organization, established in 1985 by Iran, Pakistan and Turkey, with the aim of promoting economic, technical and cultural cooperation between the member countries, is growing.