Kazakhstan’s Ambassador to Tehran Baghdad Amriyov said here that Tehran-Astana trade can increase ten-fold and reach as high as $13 billion annually from $1.3 billion for the time being.
“The potential and capacity of both countries and their high interest and determination for further expansion of relations are to the extent that mutual ties can be upgraded multiple times than the present ones,”” Amriyov told IRNA.
He emphasized that the current value of trade between two countries is only 10 percent of their potentials.
Pointing out to the importance of preparing the roadmap for expansion of bilateral relations, he noted that transportation and transit are key factors for expansion of mutual ties and important topics of discussion between Iranian and Kazakh presidents in Astana recently.
He said the Kazakhstan-Turkmenistan-Iran railway project will have a crucial role in further expansion of commercial and economic relations between Iran and Kazakhstan.
The project, which serves as a link between Russian and the Persian Gulf states’ markets, will greatly benefit Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan and Iran, he added.
The Kazakhstan segment of the project is now completed and the Turkmenistan part too will be over this year, said the diplomat, adding that the Iran part of the project is in the preliminary stage, which is hoped to be over soon and be put into operation.