Damascus-SANA
The axes of a Syrian-Iranian trade and economic forum focused on the most prominent stations of cooperation between the two countries and ways to develop them and overcome the difficulties facing the joint trade and economic relations.
The forum, which was held at the Dama Rose Hotel in Damascus and organized by the Syrian-Iranian Joint Chamber of Commerce in coordination with the Iran Trade Center, included industrialists, investors and traders from the Iranian-Syrian Joint Chamber of Commerce, the Federation of Syrian Chambers of Industry, Agriculture and Trade, and the Iranian Trade Center.
The Minister of Economy and Foreign Trade, Dr. Muhammad Samer Al-Khalil confirmed that work is being done to raise the levels of bilateral trade exchange and discuss areas of cooperation through bartering products between the two countries, the mechanisms of this barter and the nature of materials, in addition to cooperation in the investment field and projects to be implemented by Iranian companies and joint projects at the governmental and private sector levels. The levels of trade exchange and the mechanisms that help facilitate the exchange of goods and financial transactions between the two sides in a way that helps to overcome obstacles for Iranian and Syrian companies.
Minister Al-Khalil called on the Chambers of Industry, Agriculture and Commerce and the Syrian-Iranian Joint Chamber of Commerce to submit a list of materials that can be exported and imported from and to Iran, and the values and quantities of materials, in addition to the needs of the public sector.
The Minister of Economy reviewed the most prominent results of the Iranian delegation's meetings with the Syrian side, pointing out that at the level of financial transfers, there will be a specific mechanism that will shorten the trouble of time and contribute to facilitating the movement of trade and investment exchange and the work of Iranian companies towards investments in Syria.
With regard to transportation, Al-Khalil indicated that work is being done on a set of options to shorten the time through land transportation to benefit the trade movement between the two countries, in addition to other issues related to the implementation of the terms of the long-term strategic agreement approved between the two countries.
Iranian Minister of Roads and Cities Building, Mohammad Eslami, noted what was reached between the two sides and stressed that within the framework of joint economic cooperation, decisions were taken and programs developed to develop trade and investment exchanges, and it was also agreed to establish the Central Committee for Reconstruction in Syria.
Islami explained that the visit included making clear decisions to activate barter between the two countries and directing the issue of transport, which was previously one of the obstacles to trade, as well as discussing opportunities and possibilities that could lead to an increase in Syrian exports to Iran, calling on businessmen to invest the available opportunities and capabilities with actual steps.
The audience’s interventions focused on the necessity of raising economic relations to the level of political relations, developing cooperation between private sector companies in the two countries, inviting Iranian authorities to invest in the agricultural, industrial and tourism sectors, benefiting from modern Iranian technologies, and setting up exhibitions for sale in Iran with the aim of introducing the Iranian consumer to the Syrian product.
The forum, which included a dialogue session between Syrian and Iranian industrialists, was attended by the Iranian ambassador to Syria Mahdi Sobhani, the Deputy Speaker of the People’s Assembly Muhammad Akram Al-Ajlani, the engineer Jamal Al-Din Shuaib, the assistant minister of internal trade and consumer protection, and Fahd Darwish, the head of the Syrian-Iranian Joint Chamber of Commerce.
Manar Deeb and Helena Al Hindi
