Azernews.Az

By Nigar Abbasova

Baku and Tehran have considered joint projects on production of pharmaceutical products, as well as manufacturing of cars and auto spare parts.

The issues were discussed during the meeting of Azerbaijan’s Economy Minister Shahin Mustafayev with Iran’s Minister of Communication and Information Technology Mahmoud Vaezi in Baku.

Vaezi visits Baku as part of the preparations for the upcoming visit of Iranian President Hassan Rouhani to Azerbaijan.

The two ministers also discussed the cooperation in the sphere of oil and gas, energy, customs, agriculture, as well as healthcare, tourism and investment making, the Economy Ministry reported.

The parties considered draft agreements on cooperation between the two countries, and other important projects being jointly implemented by Azerbaijan and Iran, including the North-South international transportation corridor, which is aimed at connecting Europe to India.

This transport corridor is considered to be very important for Azerbaijan both in economic terms and in terms of security and tourism. The project is expected to bring huge economic benefits to the country and significantly increase the volume of cargoes, passing through the territory of Azerbaijan.

Vaezi also held talks with his Azerbaijani counterpart Ramin Guluzade. The sides highlighted the need for expansion of mutual cooperation in the field of telecommunications and information technology, MEHR News agency reported.

The Iranian side expressed readiness for close cooperation with Azerbaijan in the areas of space and satellite construction, noting that the two countries enjoy a huge potential for cooperation on manufacturing communications equipment and developing software.

Earlier, the two countries signed 11 Memorandums of Understanding (MoU) covering various areas of cooperation including transportation, electricity swap, health and medical sciences, oil, gas, and petrochemical, as well as customs, social and women affairs.

The trade turnover between Azerbaijan and Iran stood at 89.75 million manats ($56 million) as of the first half of 2016, or 65.7 percent more than in the same period in 2015, according to Azerbaijan’s State Customs Committee.

Currently, Azerbaijan and Iran are focused on expanding economic ties in various fields, including industry, agriculture, energy, alternative energy, and transportation.

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Nigar Abbasova is AzerNews’ staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @nigyar_abbasova

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