In line with efforts to facilitate trade between Iran and Turkey, the 8th joint meeting of the heads of customs of the two countries was held in Tehran in the presence of the Directors-General of Customs of the two countries.
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Alireza Moghaddasi, Deputy Minister of Economy and Director General of Iran's Customs Administration (IRICA), said: "We welcome the offer to visit the border customs every 6 months and we hope that the current obstacles will be removed with the coordination between the customs of the two countries."
Regarding the fight against smuggling, the Director-General of Iran's Customs stressed the need for more cooperation and coordination between Iran and Turkey, saying: "The large number of smugglings detected in Iranian customs shows Tehran's determination to deal with this ominous phenomenon."
He added, “In the fight against trafficking of drugs, goods, humans, and other cases, our border customs use all the power, facilities, and advanced technical equipment, and we bear many costs, both financially and human lives.”
Speaking about the need to increase customs cooperation in the form of Border Coordination Convention, facilitate and increase the speed for passage of trucks through the border customs of the two countries, facilitate import, export, and transit, and issues related to border trade and retail trading, Moghaddasi stressed that Iran is ready to improve customs relations and facilitate trade between the two sides.
For his part, Riza Tuna Turagay, the Deputy Minister of Trade and Head of Turkish Customs, said: "If some obstacles are removed and problems are resolved, the necessary conditions for an annual trade of $7.5 billion between the two countries can increase."
Turagay added, "Since Bazargan-Gorbolagh is under reconstruction and the first phase will be ready soon and the second phase will be ready by September 2022, we want to transfer part of the trade between the two countries to Kapikoy-Razi and Esendre-Sarv in the province of West Azerbaijan."
Regarding the proposal by the Director-General of Turkish Customs, Moghaddasi said: "We are ready, and if Turkey is ready, it is possible to increase trade in these customs."
The Turkish side also stressed the need for more cooperation between the two customs to control and inspect shipments more closely to detect and combat drug, goods, and human trafficking, saying that Turkey is ready to use Kapikoy-Razi and Esendre-Sarv customs for passage of commercial cargo.
Emphasizing that customs issues between Iran and Turkey can be resolved through dialogue, Turagay said: "Holding such dialogues will help solve the problems."
Before the meeting, an expert meeting of the customs officials of the two countries was held in Tehran to review the issues that could be raised at the meeting of the heads of the customs.
