Tehran, Iran, July 29
Trend:
Iranian exporters have difficulties in transporting rebar and other construction materials to Georgia, said the Iranian ambassador in Georgia.
Syed Javad Ghavam Shahidi discussed the obstacles facing Iranian exporters in an interview with Trend.
"The problems with import of Iranian goods and particularly rebar to Georgia are not new, but today they become more formidable," he noted.
"Other Iranian goods used to have the same challenges, but today there are very few objections to them. However, there are still issues with the rebar exports, although Iranian transporting companies comply with all regulations and standards introduced by Georgia," he added.
Speaking about the reasons behind the problem, he said: "In the past, Georgia continuously imported rebar from Iran continuously, so the reason for not letting 11 trucks to the country is related to either the competitors in the sector or new regulations we aren't aware of."
"We consider Georgia as our traditional partner and believe our trade cooperation creates good opportunities for Georgia. These opportunities should not be missed, so we are trying to solve the problem," added the Iranian ambassador.
"We expect that the Iranian companies committed to European standards will not face problem with bringing goods to Georgia, rebar included. In order to address the issue, we have asked for an appointment to negotiate it with our Georgian partners." he noted.
He went on to say: "According to Georgian officials, they intend to comply with European rules. The Georgian side said that new standards have been implemented since July 3 and announced to Iranian side. In turn, we hold the position that Iranian companies follow the standards and have the necessary certificates, so implementing new rules should not interrupt the process."
Tehran Chamber of Commerce has recently announced that Georgia is drafting a bill to limit imports of Iranian goods since they have become more competitive with Georgia's domestic products due to rial's foreign currency fluctuation.
Georgia seeks to pass the anti-dumping bill to support its domestic production and has asked Tehran Chambers of Commerce to announce the news to its members to avoid any losses by Iranian exporters.