Tehran, Iran, Nov.19
Trend:
According to director of Iran's energy exports federation, Hamidreza Salehi, Iraq's recent approach to gas and electricity export`s payment is an abuse of Iran's economic situation.
"Unfortunately, the US sanctions have made such a situation that even Iraq is brushing-off Iran. It shows that Iran's diplomacy has not succeeded in dealing with them and it resulted in daily rise of Iraq's debt to Iran,” Salehi told Trend.
“The Iran Ministry of Energy was not successful in its business with Iraq as it should, and it seems the private sector has entered to redeem Iran's money from the Iraqi government.”
"The Iraqis have abused Iran's current situation, and while they have sufficient oil and religious tourism revenues from oil and pilgrims, they have been delaying the payment. Currently, these debts have been accumulating,” he added.
"There was a time when Iraq had the possibility of transferring money in suitcases but the volume of debts are so high that it would no longer be possible for governments to do so. We have suggested that instead of receiving the money, Iran can lend it to Iraqis and turn it into infrastructure projects such as gas pipelines, airport construction, operating refinery or the construction of a power plant in Iraq by Iranian contractors, that generates income for Iran and create jobs,” he said.
Iraqi officials told Reuters last week that Iraq had agreed to sell foodstuffs in return for Iranian gas and energy supplies.
Iranian trade officials denied that any food-for-gas scheme could be set up as Iran was a net exporter of food to Iraq.
Iran`s president, Hasan Rouhani urged to boost Iran-Iraq annual bilateral trade to $20 billion from the current level of $12 billion.
Rouhani’s remarks, made after a meeting with visiting Iraqi President Barham Salih, came about two weeks after the United States restored sanctions targeting Iran’s key oil industry as well as its banking and transportation sectors.