– NAMDARNEWS – Italian companies have always had positive views about cooperation with the Iranain
always taken a balanced approach towards Tehran in spite of ups and downs in Iran’s relations with the European countries and changes in governments in Italy
At his remarks, the diplomat elaborated on the history of Iran-Italy economic ties, economic relations in the post-Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) era, and economic diplomacy taken by the new Iranian government took office in August
As the commercial attaché noted the economic diplomacy plays a leading role at different levels of international and national cooperation in economic and political fields
The aim behind economic diplomacy is to make use of the foreign relations’ existing capacities for maximizing [profits of] national economy, he said
The commercial attaché went on to say that attention to economic diplomacy has increased in the new Iranian government as Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian has underlined the importance of supporting private sectors for having interactions with other countries
In his remarks, the diplomat described “export” as one of the main ways to tackle the difficult economic conditions
Also, he stressed the need to plan for the post-sanctions era
Touching upon Tehran-Rome relations, the diplomat said the two enjoy economic relations based on mutual understanding and confidence
Italy has been Iran’s first European trade partner for years, he underlined
The Islamic Republic of Iran welcomes progress in relations, particularly in economic ties, with Italy, he added
About the JCPOA which was signed by Iran and the six world powers in July 2015, the diplomat said Italy was not among the signatories but always supported the deal
The United States withdrew unilaterally from the international nuclear deal, aka JCPOA, in May 2018 and imposed as it claimed “the highest level of sanctions against Iran” in November of the same year
Although a large number of Italian companies left Iran after the US withdrawal, some are still in Iran; and this is appreciable, the diplomat noted
Further, he appreciated Italy for sending 1.6 million doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine to Iran
After the JCPOA, economic relations between Iran and Italy were promoted; but the continuation of the sanctions did seriously damage trade exchanges between the two countries, he added
Elsewhere, he referred to the Iran-Italy joint chamber of commerce with 5,000 members as the biggest joint economic chamber that Iran has with other countries
At the end of his remarks, the diplomat expressed hope that Iran and Italy would witness a boom in their economic relations after the removal of the sanctions and implementation of parts of mutual agreements