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Minister: Turkey, Iran can create free economic zone

Business Materials 28 November 2013 16:20 (UTC +04:00)

Baku, Azerbaijan, Nov. 28

By Rufiz Hafizoglu - Trend:

Turkey and Iran can create a free economic zone, Turkish TV channel Haber7 quoted Turkey's Minister of Development, Cevdet Yilmaz as saying on Nov. 28.

According to the minister, Ankara and Tehran have good relations in all spheres, but the economic sphere lags behind others.

"Relations in economic sphere between Turkey and Iran are below the two countries' potential," the minister said.

Yilmaz also said the lifting of sanctions imposed against Iran will contribute to the development of the region, as well as Turkey.

On Nov. 24 Iran and P5+1 reached a breakthrough in talks on Tehran's nuclear programme. The sides signed a joint action plan in Geneva which implies some lessening of sanctions against Iran. Earlier the country's Ambassador to Turkey, Alireza Bikdeli said that the embargo against Iran negatively affected economic relations with Ankara.

According to the ambassador, trade turnover between Ankara and Tehran could have reached $30 billion, was it not for the embargo imposed against Iran. The diplomat also noted that Iran lost $8 billion in trade operations with Turkey because of the embargo.

"The country's trade turnover between with Turkey totalled $22 billion in 2012, despite the embargo imposed against Iran," Bigdeli added.

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