Romanian-Iranian Relations

Romanias Foreign Minister Lazar Comanescu has paid a visit to Iran, alongside the largest economic delegation to have ever accompanied a Romanian high official abroad.

Daniela Budu, 03.03.2016, 13:37

Romania can be one of Irans gateways to Europe. On a visit to Iran, the Romanian Foreign Minister, Lazar Comanescu, has stated for Radio Romania that several Romanian business people have established contacts with Iranian companies in such sectors as energy, oil exploitation and processing, car manufacturing, agriculture and human resources management.

Lazar Comanescu: “I held talks with my Iranian counterpart, Mohammad Javad Zarif, about the opportunities provided by a transport infrastructure that would connect Iran and Romania via Azerbaijan, Georgia, the Black Sea and further through the Danube; a transport route that would benefit the Iranian carriers in their way to Western Europe. For each sector, the Romanian business representatives have or are about to establish direct contacts with their Iranian partners.

Together with Iranian officials, Lazar Comanescu has identified the main fields in which the two countries can cooperate. Lazar Comanescu: “The wish to see Romania become once again one of Irans major trading partners has been strongly highlighted both by the president and the foreign minister. Starting from our previous economic cooperation and also taking into account the changes that have occurred in the meantime, we have identified those areas where the potential is high, such as energy, oil exploitation and processing, the gas sector and car manufacturing. Cars are being manufactured in Iran under Renault license and many parts used for the building of these cars come from Romania.

However, according to minister Comanescu, these are not the only areas in which Romania and Iran could cooperate. Lazar Comanescu again: “There is a high cooperation potential in agriculture, in the food industry as well as in land and water management. I believe that Romania can provide big opportunities with regard to Irans access to Central and Eastern Europe and to the EU as a whole.

Minister Comanescu and the Iranian Minister of the Economy, Ali Tayebnia, agreed upon setting up sectoral working groups to prepare the proceedings of the joint Economic Committee, due to be hosted by Bucharest this year. Also, the Romanian Foreign Minister, Lazar Comanescu, held talks with the Chairman of the Iranian Parliament, Ali Larijani.