The Astana Times - Kazakh Deputy Prime Minister – Minister of Trade and Integration Serik Zhumangarin signed a memorandum of cooperation in the field of trade, transport and logistics on Nov. 3, which included increasing cargo traffic with Iran from one to four million tons a year, reported Kazakhstan’s Central Communications Service.
Zhumangarin paid an official visit to Iran, where he met with Iranian Minister of Roads and Urban Development Rostam Ghasemi to discuss the expansion of cargo traffic. To do this, the parties agreed to adopt a trilateral roadmap to eliminate infrastructural bottlenecks and develop the potential of the International North-South Transport Corridor for 2022-2025 by the end of the year.
They agreed that the roadmap should provide for the creation of a special visa regime for freight transport drivers and other participants in the process of international transportation; the optimization of the customs clearance processes, including the introduction of a unified tariff, transport document and information system; and the launch of a pilot project for the transportation of goods by the road along the route Kazakhstan – Turkmenistan – Iran using navigation seals.
The parties also will consider a special visa regime for business representatives and the possibility of creating a joint export-import company.
Zhumangarin discussed the opportunities for Kazakh agricultural and industrial products to enter new markets and the removal of barriers in the International North-South Transport Corridor with Iranian Minister of Agriculture Javad Sadatinejad.
“Kazakhstan is ready to export wheat, barley, flour products, confectionery, meat, vegetable oils and other products. We are interested in increasing the volume of mutual trade of agro-industrial products with Iran by up to one billion dollars, as well as in increasing deliveries to the markets of Pakistan, India, Southeast Asia and East Africa, which are new for Kazakhstan. The trading experience of Iranian colleagues in these markets would be very useful for our business,” Zhumangarin said.
