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Iran is in talks with the Russia-led Eurasian Economic Union (EEU) to forge a free-trade pact, state-run media said.
Iran’s economy has revived only slowly since some sanctions were removed after the signing of the nuclear deal with Western powers in 2015. However, many foreign investors remain cautious for fear of incurring penalties from remaining unilateral US sanctions.
In turning to the EEU, Iran would be building on increasing trade, economic and military ties with Russia, including the two countries’ support of Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad in his war with opposition groups and militants trying to topple him.
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State-run Press TV said today that Iranian Communications and Information Technology Minister, Mahmoud Vaezi, and EEU Trade Minister, Veronika Nikishina, met in St Petersburg yesterday to discuss a free trade pact.
Iran has compiled a list of 200 items to trade with the EEU, according to Press TV. If a free trade pact were signed, Iran would grant EEU members preferential tariffs for three years before launching free trade, Vaezi said.