Baku, Azerbaijan, Sept. 19
By Fatih Karimov - Trend:
A British trade delegation will visit Iran in October, said Norman Lamont, the Chairman of the British-Iranian Chamber of Commerce.
Richard Dalton, the former British ambassador to Iran, will lead the delegation, Lamont said in an interview with Iran's IRNA news agency Sept. 19.
The delegation will be comprised of representatives from oil and gas, service, and finance sectors, Lamont said, expressing hope that trade ties between the two countries would be expanded.
"Over the past decade, the bilateral trade has decreased due to political tensions. We have overcome tough situations. Under these circumstances, the chamber of commerce has been facing with financial problems," he explained.
"However, there are very good opportunities now and we should take advantage of the opportunities."
Prior to the Western-led sanctions against Iran in 2011, the Iran-UK trade was more than €623 million, compared to €256 million in 2012, which further fell to €121 million in the same year due to the escalation of sanctions, according to the Eurostat.
The figure stood at over €121 million back in 2013.
However, the two-way trade took an ascending tend in 2014 in the wake of the interim nuclear accord reached between Iran and world powers, touching €152 million.
There between the two countries amounted to €80 million in the first half of 2015, a 9 percent decrease compared to the same period in 2014.