Iran's Commerce Minister Mehdi Ghazanfari will leave here for Geneva tomorrow to attend the 7th World Trade Organization's ministerial summit, November 30-December 2.
This is the second presence of Iran in the WTO summit after being admitted as a supervisory member in the organization in 2005, according to IRNA news agency.
Iran has sent a summary of its commerce policies to the global trade regulator to start membership talks in the WTO.
The move would pave the way for Iran to join the influential trade group.
The document covers all aspects of Iran''s trade and legal regime and is essential for joining the trade body.
The trade body agreed to allow Iran to commence membership talks in May 2005 nearly a decade after the Islamic Republic first began its quest for ascension to the organization.
Until then, the United States had stymied Iran''s efforts to enter the WTO in large part because of opposition to Iran''s nuclear program, Press TV reported.
Trade sources say Switzerland''s WTO ambassador, Luzius Wasescha, would chair a working group to lead the negotiations with Iran.
WTO rules require candidates to negotiate with the working group which represent the trade body. WTO entry negotiations may take years to complete.
The World Trade Organization is an international organization designed by its founders to supervise and liberalize international capital trade. The organization officially commenced on January 1, 1995 replacing the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT), which commenced in 1947. The WTO deals with regulation of trade between participating countries. It provides a framework for negotiating and formalizing trade agreements.
The WTO has 153 members, representing more than 95 percent of total world trade and 30 observers, most seeking membership. The WTO is governed by a ministerial conference, meeting every two years; a general council, which implements the conference''s policy decisions and is responsible for day-to-day administration; and a director-general, who is appointed by the ministerial conference.