Iran Ready to Export Agricultural Products to Russia

(FNA)- Iranian Agricultural Jihad Minister Mahmoud Hojjati underlined his ministry's readiness to export Iran's foodstuff, fishery and dairy products to Russia.

"The (Iranian) Agricultural Jihad ministry is doing its best to facilitate exports of Iranian products to enable the Iranian companies to easily export their products to Russia," Hojjati said in a meeting with Iranian Ambassador to Moscow Mehdi Sanayee in the Russian capital on Monday.

He noted that the Iranian Agricultural Ministry has issued the needed permissions for the companies specializing in fishery products to start exports.

The Iranian ambassador to Moscow, for his part, pointed to the vast capacities existing for Iran-Russia cooperation in foodstuff and fishery areas, and expressed the hope that the two countries' cooperation in this field would expand.

In April, Iranian Deputy Agricultural Jihad Minister Hassan Younes Sinaki announced that Tehran and Moscow plan to sign a contract to increase their cooperation in agricultural fields, specially export of Iran's livestock and fishery products to Russia.

"The protocol on export of livestock and fishery products has been handed over to the Russian side and it will be signed within the next one month," Sinaki said, addressing the Iran-Russia Trade Conference in Tehran.

He noted that promotion of Halal products and setting up Iran' Trade Center in Moscow could also be discussed with the Russian officials in Moscow as the two sides prepare to sign the cooperation agreement.

The word halal means permitted or lawful. Halal foods are foods that are allowed under Islamic dietary guidelines.

Sinaki pointed to dairy products, dried fruits, vegetables, chicken and egg as among other items for Iranian export to Russia.

Speaking at the same conference, Iranian Deputy Minister of Industries, Mines and Trade Mojtaba Khosrowtaj declared the contents of a trade agreement signed recently between Tehran and Moscow.

"Setting preferential tariffs for some goods, exports guarantee permits and visas for businessmen are among the topics of our agreement with Russia," Khosrowtaj said.

He reiterated that the two countries have agreed that their private sectors should play a more active role in trade exchanges between the two countries, and said, "A Russian bank is presently active in importing goods from Russia and the two countries' central banks are negotiating to involve more banks in the two countries' trade exchanges."

Khosrowtaj pointed to Russia's over 800-billion-dollar foreign trade balance, and said, "Russia's exports volume exceeded $500 billion in 2013 and it imported around $300 billion worth of commodities in the same period which was a big market for the European and American countries and now this capacity has been released to Iran."

The deputy trade minister further pointed to Moscow's needs to farming and agro imports from Iran, and stated, "Russia has taken up to prepare a list to inform the Iranian companies of its needs to basic and agricultural products."

Russia and Iran have been negotiating a deal that could see Moscow buy up to 500,000 barrels of Iranian oil daily in exchange for Russian equipment and goods. The talks reached progress late last year, ahead of the sanctions relief for Tehran under the November nuclear deal struck by world powers and Iran’s government.

Iran-Russia trade currently totals $5bln a year, but economists say the two countries can multiply the volume of their trade exchanges.