EAEU-Iran talks on free trade agreement set for September
BelTA | 25 August 2022
EAEU-Iran talks on free trade agreement set for September
MOSCOW, 25 August (BelTA) - The next round of talks on a full-fledged free trade agreement between the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) and Iran will take place in Moscow at the end of September. The decision was agreed at the meeting of Member of the Board (Minister) for Trade of the Eurasian Economic Commission (EEC) Andrey Slepnev with Iranian Deputy Minister of Industry, Mine and Trade Alireza Peymanpak, BelTA learned from the EEC press service.
The parties praised the achieved level of trade and economic cooperation between the Eurasian Economic Union and Iran. In particular, Alireza Peymanpak said that this year the mutual trade and transit of goods through Iran in the North-South direction has risen almost 50%.
According to Andrey Slepnev, significant progress in the transition to settlements in national currencies has been of especial importance in the current environment. “The latest key positive development has been the start of trade in the “ruble-rial” currency pairs,” the EEC minister said.
The parties outlined a further schedule for negotiations on the future agreement. “We expect significant progress in the tariff part, which will bring the final stage of the negotiation process closer,” Andrey Slepnev concluded.
In 2021, trade between the EAEU and Iran increased by 73% compared to 2020, exceeding $5 billion, while exports of EAEU member states more than doubled (from $1.65 billion to $3.42 billion), and imports went up by 29% (from $1.25 billion to $1.6 billion).
