Baku, Azerbaijan, March 15
By Khalid Kazimov - Trend:
At a meeting in Tehran, members of the Iran-Russia Joint Chamber of Commerce considered the plans to facilitate banking ties, visa requirements and increasing the number of flights between the two countries.
Expressing his dissatisfaction with the low level of trade turnover between Iran and Russia, Asadollah Asgaroladi, a member of the Iran-Russia Joint Chamber of Commerce, said Tehran and Moscow faced several hurdles for the expansion of trade ties, Fars news agency reported March 15.
Asgaroladi made the remarks at a meeting between the Iran's Chamber of Commerce, Industries, Mines and Agriculture and Russia's Ural Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Tehran.
He added that some problems in transportation, particularly in aviation and issuing visas, have already been cleared, but there are still problems with customs tariffs and money transactions.
According to Asgaroladi, the volume of trade turnover between Iran and Russia currently stands at $2 billion, while the volume of trade turnover between the Islamic Republic and China is $40 billion.
During the meeting, Qadir Ghiafeh, another member of the Iran-Russia Joint Chamber, said traders will obtain visas within three days after receiving a recommendation from the Chamber.
Ghiafeh added that a number of Iranian bankers have paid a visit to Russia over the past week to discuss facilitating banking ties.
Iran and Russia have also agreed to establish or increase the number of existing regular flights from Iran to the Russian cities of Moscow, Saint Petersburg and Sochi, with an aim to facilitate trips, as well as increase the trade turnover between the two countries.
The sides are also considering a plan to launch a direct flight per week to Russia's Astrakhan as of late March.