Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif says Iran is interested in long-term economic relations with New Zealand as he visits Wellington in his capacity for the first time in 10 years.
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Ahead of a planned meeting with Prime Minister John Key on Monday, Zarif said New Zealand's trade with Iran could surpass pre-sanction levels and tap into "vast possibilities."
"We continue to buy butter and milk products from you, but we are interested in going beyond that and engaging in long-term economic relations with New Zealand," he told New Zealand Radio.
Zarif said new trade possibilities included investment in petrochemical products, and high-tech areas such as geothermal, nanotechnology and biotechnology.
Earlier, the Iranian minister met his New Zealander counterpart Murray McCully for a “refresh” of the bilateral relationship, with trade top of the agenda, Otago Daily Times said.
They signed off on an arrangement between the Export Credit Office and Export Guarantee Fund of Iran which McCully said would help give exporters more confidence in the trading arrangements.
Iran was New Zealand's fifth largest trading partner in the 1980s before sanctions were imposed on the Islamic Republic. The removal of those sanctions opens the way for trade again, Otago Daily Times said.
Zarif is currently on a tour of six countries in the Asia-Pacific region. He will travel to Australia on Tuesday for talks with Australian Foreign Minister Julie Bishop who visited Tehran last April.
Vietnamese president in Tehran
On Sunday, Vietnamese President Truong Tan Sang arrived in Tehran along with a senior delegation of officials to discuss expansion of economic relations among other issues.
In a joint news conference, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said annual bilateral trade was worth about $350 million which the two countries planned to raise to $2 billion in the next five years.
Vietnamese Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Vu Hong Nam told Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper that Vietnam and Iran are traditionally good trade partners.
Nam said Iran, with its population of more than 80 million, is a prospective market for Vietnam’s staple exports of rice, tea, coffee, sea food, and textiles.
He said many Vietnamese traders are accompanying the president in the visit, “looking to make the most out of the upcoming Vietnam-Iran economic cooperation.”
The State Bank of Vietnam and the National Bank of Iran planned to sign an agreement for cooperation which Nam hoped would “open new pathways for business.”
Vietnamese Ambassador to Iran Nguyen Hong Thach told Iran Times the two countries would negotiate the establishment of a joint venture between the Iranian Ghadir Investment Company and PetroVietnam in Vietnam to manufacture petrochemical products.
