Azernews.Az

By Fatma Babayeva

The Swedish Trade Council seeks to set up an office in Tehran with a view to facilitate development of the economic relations between the two countries.

The statement was made by Mohsen Jalalpour, Head of Iran's Chamber of Commerce, Industry, Mine and Agriculture following his meeting with Ilva Berry, head of the Swedish Trade Council, Fars News reported.

The opening of the office is expected in September 2016.

Also Iran's Chamber of Commerce and the Swedish Trade Council plan to develop a joint road map for the two countries' businesspersons and traders, according to Jalalpour.

Jalalpour noted that five Memorandas of Understanding (MoU) were signed between Iran and the Swedish Trade Council during Iran’s Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif’s recent visit to Sweden.

During the meeting with Swedish Minister for Enterprise and Innovation Mikael Damberg, Zarif stated that Iran hopes economic ties between the two countries would return to its previous conditions after the nuclear deal in July.

Renovation of Iran's heavy transportation system, eradication of air pollution, development of new energies and waste management are the spheres in which the two countries can expand cooperation, added Zarif.

Damberg, for his part, welcomed boosting cooperation with Tehran, and expressed the hope that the Iran-Sweden economic forum which is due to be held in Stockholm today would pave the ground for more economic cooperation between the Iranian and Swedish governments and companies.

Iran's exports to Sweden are mainly comprised of saffron, fruit juice, carpet, and light industrial products, while Sweden's exports to Iran are mainly services.

After most of the international sanctions imposed on Iran were lifted in mid-January, Tehran began boosting relations with the EU.

Iran's President Hassan Rouhani traveled to France and Italy in late January and signed dozens of MoUs, while several top European officials also visited Iran during the post-sanctions era.

---

Fatma Babayeva is AzerNews’ staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @Fatma_Babayeva

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz