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YEREVAN, 19 July. /ARKA/. The trade turnover with Armenia has surged from $200 million to $711 million, Iran’s Ambassador to Armenia Mehdi Sobhani said in an interview with Iran's SNN news agency./pp
He said Armenia, with its 3 million population, is a member of the Eurasian Economic Union (EEU), which has turned the country into a platform for the 200 million-strong Eurasian market./pp
He noted that southern Armenia, as a strategic region, plays an important role in security and trade between Iran and Armenia, and the presence of Iran's consulate general in Kapan (the capital of southern Armenian province of Syunik) is very important./pp ‘Joint projects such as building roads and expanding gas and electricity exchange projects help improve regional infrastructure and meet mutual needs. Cultural and educational interaction leads to deepening friendly relations between the two nations,’ Sobhani said./pp
According to the ambassador, relations between Iran and Armenia are of special importance because of the geographical and strategic location of the two countries./pp ‘As one of Iran's neighbours, Armenia shares a 46-km border with us, which is one of the most secure and stable borders and plays a vital role in strengthening regional security,’ Sobhani noted./pp
The diplomat said that last year it was possible to conclude the largest contract with the Armenian government since its independence./pp ‘This $212 million contract is for the construction of the Agarak-Kajaran road in southern Armenia, which is part of the North-South corridor. This road reduces the travel time from 1 hour 20 minutes to 20 minutes and the width of the road increases from 6 metres to 17 metres, which is very useful in terms of safety and speed. We have other smaller joint projects,’ Sobhani said./pp
He said Iran exports 360 million cubic metres of gas to Armenia annually and imports electricity in return, adding that Iranian gas exports to Armenia will double in the near future./pp ‘We have managed to bring the third power transmission line from Armenia to Iran almost to the final stage, which will be put into operation in the next few months, and we will be able to double electricity imports from Armenia and gas exports,’ Sobhani noted./pp
Speaking about cooperation in the field of education, Sobhani said one of the great achievements between the two countries in the field of education has been the promotion of Persian language in Armenia./pp ‘The Armenian government has approved that schoolchildren in this country should learn one of the languages of neighbouring countries, and interest in the Farsi language has increased significantly. There are 19 schools where Persian is taught and 3,000 students are learning it. We have provided the necessary books and also sent Persian language teachers to Armenia,’ Sobhani concluded./pp
According to the National Statistical Committee, the volume of Armenia's trade turnover with Iran for the first 5 months of 2024 was $267.9 million, decreasing by 6.1% compared to January-May 2023. At the same time, exports to Iran decreased by 2.6% to $44.4 million, while imports totalled $226.4 million with a 6.5% decline. -0-/pp/p
