Logistic hub to boost Qazvin-Aktau economic cooperation
February 16, 2020 - The establishment of a logistic hub will boost economic cooperation between Qazvin and Aktau port in Kazakhstan, said the chairman of Qazvin Chamber of Commerce.
Mehdi Bakhshandeh said that Kazakhstan is one the target markets for our exports and due to its membership in international trade organizations, there is great potential for cooperation including road construction, building trade complexes and manufacturing plants, reported Mehr News Agency.
In the past three months, over $1 billion worth of goods were exported to Eurasia from Iran, he noted.
“Aktau port is an important gateway for re-export of Iranian goods in the current situation. Kazakhstan Ambassador Askhat Orazbay welcomed our project during his recent visit to Qazvin Province”, he said, adding €13 million will be invested in our projects.
On February 4, Kazakhstan’s Ambassador to Tehran Askhat Orazbay referred to the capacities of cooperation between the industrial centers in Iran and his country’s Port Aktau, saying that he feels optimistic about further economic ties between the two countries.
Orazbay said that cooperation between Qazvin, as one of the major Iranian industrial provinces, and Port Aktau in Kazakhstan should be improved.
Touring several industrial units in Qazvin, he said that the visit took place at the invitation of Qazvin Chamber of Commerce to discuss ways of promoting mutual cooperation between Iran and Kazakhstan.
All the proposals made by the Iranian side are all practicable, one of which is creating a hub, he said, adding that Port Aktau, which is also considered a free economic zone, has also been proposed for exchanging goods.
Officials of Port Aktau will travel to Qazvin in the near future, he said, noting that the Kazakhstan Embassy in Tehran is optimistic that both sides will achieve good and workable results during the trip.
Iran can export fresh and dried fruits, cement and certain industrial machinery and import chemical materials, metals, as well as some other items in exchange, Orazbay said.
In November, Kazakhstan’s former president Nursultan Nazarbayev, in a meeting with Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, called for the expansion of mutual cooperation between the two countries in different fields.
During the meeting in the capital city of Nur-Sultan, Nazarbayev voiced his satisfaction in the current state of bilateral relations, but noted that Kazakhstan and Iran should try to further enhance their interactions in different fields.
Zarif and Nazarbayev met on the sidelines of the Astana Club meeting in the Central Asian country’s capital.
Bilateral ties, regional developments as well as other international issues were the topics discussed by Nazarbayev and Zarif during the meeting.
Before meeting with Nazarbayev, the Iranian foreign minister held a meeting with his Kazakh counterpart, Mukhtar Tleuberdi. During the meeting, the two sides discussed trade and economic cooperation, especially within the Caspian Sea Legal Regime, ports, air transport cooperation and consular relations.