Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 16
By Khalid kazimov – Trend:
Iranian Minister of industry, mine and trade, Mohammad Reza Nematzadeh, has said that his country is capable of providing Thailand with crude and oil products.
“Thailand used to purchase crude oil from Iran which has been halted. We hope that these trades will be resumed. They [Thai officials] purchase oil products from other countries and we [Iran] can supply a part of those [products],” IRNA quoted him as saying.
According to the minister, the current volume of trade turnover between the two countries stands at $400 million which is projected to reach $3 billion within the next five years.
He further encouraged Thai traders to invest in Iran particularly in petrochemical as well as steel sectors.
According to Nematzadeh, the sides will also make efforts aimed at normalizing banking ties.
Although the nuclear related sanctions on Iran were lifted following the implementation of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action on January 16, Iran still has difficulty establishing banking ties with leading international banks as they are worried about running afoul of US regulations.