Tehran, Iran, Oct. 20
Trend:
Saeed Badamchi Shabestari, Iran’s new ambassador to South Korea, said Tehran has developed a comprehensive program to boost its all-out ties with Seoul in various fields, including politics and economy.
“We have a comprehensive development plan to strengthen our bilateral ties with South Korea,” Badamchi Shabestari told IRNA on October 20.
Our ties in the sectors of politics, economy, culture, education, and trade, he added.
“The two countries have also great potential to boost ties in the fields of energy, petrochemistry, industry, IT, and science,” the envoy said.
Recently, South Korean Ambassador to Tehran Ryu Jeong-hyun said companies in his country understand the significance of the Iranian market and will not leave it under the US sanctions.
The Korean diplomat made the remarks in a Wednesday meeting with Bahman Abdollahi, the head of the Iran Chamber of Cooperatives, in Tehran.
“Many European companies are leaving Iran, but [South] Korean firms have declared they will stay in Iran,” he said, adding that Korean companies understand how important it is to be present in the Iranian market.
“Our ties are currently influenced by the US sanctions…, but the fact that cooperatives are exempted from these bans gives South Korea a very good opportunity,” the Korean diplomat said.
US President Donald Trump in May pulled his country out of the 2015 Iran nuclear deal and announced he would re-impose the anti-Tehran sanctions, which it had lifted under the agreement, in two phases.
The first round of sanctions, which mainly targets Iran's financial, automotive, aviation and metals sectors, was re-imposed in early August. The second round, which will hit the Iranian oil industry and banking relations, is slated for November 4.