Iran Aims to Boost Trade with Uzbekistan to $5 Billion

Iran is prepared to significantly increase its trade exchanges with the Republic of Uzbekistan, aiming to reach a value of $5 billion.

Iran’s Deputy Parliament Speaker Hamidreza Haji Babaei made the remarks in a meeting with Speaker of the Legislative Chamber of Oliy Majlis of the Republic of Uzbekistan Nuriddin Ismailov on Thursday, stating that Iran is ready to increase the level of its economic exchanges with the Republic of Uzbekistan to $5 billion, The Caspian Post reports, citing Iranian media.

During the meeting, Iran’s deputy Parliament speaker conveyed greetings from Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf to his Uzbek counterpart and noted that organizing the World Inter-Parliamentary Summit in Uzbekistan is of special importance to Iran.

Referring to the historical relations between the two friendly and brotherly countries of Iran and Uzbekistan, Haji Babaei added that Iran is an independent country whose policies are based on this basis.

Multilateralism, relations with neighbors, and peaceful nuclear energy are among the fundamental programs of the Islamic Republic, he said, adding that Iran has always sought regional and global peace.

Referring to the Islamic Republic of Iran's readiness for the economic, technical, and development cooperation with Uzbekistan, he stated that the Islamic Republic has a high capability in building refineries and power plants and implementing road, rail, energy, and mining projects.

Accordingly, Iran has expressed its readiness to cooperate with Uzbekistan in implementing the aforementioned projects, the Iranian legislator stressed.

He put the current volume of trade exchanges between Iran and Uzbekistan at about $500 million, underlining that the two countries have high potentials and capacities to ramp up the value of their bilateral trade.

Speaker of the Legislative Chamber of Oliy Majlis of the Republic of Uzbekistan, for his part, expressed his thanks for the presence of the Iranian parliamentary delegation in this country, emphasizing that Uzbekistan attaches great importance to enhancing its relations with Iran in all fields, especially in the areas of trade and economy.