Baku, Azerbaijan, March 12
By Umid Niayesh - Trend:
Iran and Turkmenistan have agreed to double their trade turnover by the end of current year, the Islamic Republic president, Hassan Rouhani said.
The value of Tehran-Ashgabat trade stood at $3.7 billion in 2014, Rouhani said, adding the figure will increase by 100 percent in 2015.
Iranian president made the remarks upon arrival in Tehran on March 11 night, after a 2-day visit to Turkmenistan.
The level of Iran and Turkmenistan trade is planned to reach $60 billion in ten years, Rouhani emphasized, Iran's official IRIB news agency reported March 12.
Iranian president further said that the two countries also agreed to facilitate issuing visa for traders to promote the mutual trade.
Tehran and Ashgabat will raise goods transit from Turkmenistan to southern Iranian ports from the current level of two million metric tons to 10 million, he added.
The two countries also held extensive negotiation over energy trade, Rouhani said, adding Iran expressed readiness for transiting Turkmenistan's oil and gas and buying electricity from the country.
The sides also discussed legal status of Caspian Sea, possible oil and gas resources in its eastern and southern coasts as well as cooperation and joint investment for extracting the mentioned resources, the president said.
Tehran and Ashgabat also agreed on boosting activity of their ports in the Caspian Sea, he added.
Iran and Turkmenistan signed 17 Memorandum of Understandings (MoUs) on economic, cultural, political, legal, scientific, and technical cooperation in Rouhani's visit to Ashgabat.
Based on the agreements, the two countries' foreign ministries will start a five-year cooperation project.
Cooperation in environmental, cultural, artistic, scientific and educational sectors for four years was also agreed to.
Iran, Turkmenistan non-oil trade turnover stood at $1.112 billion in 2014. The Islamic Republic exported $933 billion worth of non-oil goods to Turkmenistan, meanwhile imported about $179 million worth of goods from Ashgabat in the same period, according to Iran's Customs Administration.
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