Uzbekistan, Iran discuss co-op in trade, economic sphere
Issues of the Uzbek-Iranian bilateral relations’ development were discussed during the meeting of Uzbek Foreign Minister Abdulaziz Kamilov with Iranian Ambassador Ali Mardoniy Fard, who is completing his diplomatic mission in the country, said the message released Sept.16 by the foreign ministry of Uzbekistan.
During the meeting, the sides exchanged views on development of cooperation in economy, trade, transport and communication and other fields of mutual interest.
Kamilov mentioned productive work of the Iranian diplomat on strengthening and expansion of the Uzbek-Iranian dialogue.
The Iranian ambassador expressed his appreciation for the support of his diplomatic mission in Uzbekistan.
At present, Uzbekistan and Iran have over 30 intergovernmental and interdepartmental agreements defining principles and directions of bilateral cooperation.
In particular, trade and economic ties between the two countries are governed by the agreements “On trade and economic cooperation”, “On mutual encouragement and protection of investments”, “On the avoidance of double taxation and the exchange of information with respect to taxes on income and capital” as well as a number of intergovernmental memoranda.
Currently, there are more than 120 joint Iranian-Uzbek companies in Uzbekistan, 20 of which are created with 100 percent Iranian capital. The activities of these companies apply to the production of consumer goods, textiles and agricultural products, carpets, services, technology development, implementation of export and import operations.
In August 2014, the governments of Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Iran and Oman signed a memorandum of entry into force of the agreement on the establishment of the Central Asia – Persian Gulf transport corridor.
Iran consistently ranks among the leading economic partners of Uzbekistan. At the end of 2014, the Uzbek-Iranian trade turnover was more than $250 million, according to the Embassy of Iran.
