Head of Mashhad Chamber of Commerce, a local Iranian chamber of commerce in Khorasan Razavi Province which shares large borders with Afghanistan, says Iran private sector stands ready to play a more increased role in Afghanistan’s economy.

Mohammad-Reza Tavakkoli made the remarks in a meeting in Mashhad on Saturday with a high-ranking Afghan delegation headed by acting foreign minister of the Taliban Mawlawi Amir Khan Muttaqi.

Currently, the ground is prepared for greater cooperation between Iran and Afghanistan, he said, expressing hope for more improvement of economic relations between the two countries by removing some obstacles hindering bilateral relations. 

Speaking in the meantime, the Afghan foreign minister stressed that his country is secure enough for foreign investors, adding that Kabul is very eager to see the presence of Iranian economic actors in Afghanistan.

Referring to Afghanistan’s rich farms and mines, he said that today investors are coming to the Afghanistan from distant countries and the ground is prepared for the presence of Iranian investors.

The minister added that his country plans to join Afghanistan’s transportation routes to that of China, Central Asia and South East Asia and also to other world countries via the Iranian soil.

Mahmoud Siadat, the head of Iran-Afghanistan Joint Chamber of Commerce, who was also present in the meeting, referred to some problems on the way of Iran-Afghanistan cooperation and proposed for the formation of a permanent committee to pursue the implementation of economic agreements between the two countries. 

Mohammad Yunus Momand, the Chairman of Afghanistan Chamber of Commerce and Industries (ACCI), was another person who addressed the meeting and called for the establishment of preferential trade with Iran so as to give a boost to Afghanistan’s exports to the western neighbor.

“We don't want our trade balance to be negative and we are looking for a balance between exports to Iran and imports from this country,” he said.