DUSHANBE, February 16, 2011, Asia-Plus — Signing of a memorandum of cooperation (MoC) between Tajikistan and Iran is postponed until late February, according to the Ministry of energy and Industries (MoEI).
As it was reported earlier, the sides were supposed to sign the document on February 17. “The sides agreed that the document will signed in late February during a visit of Iran’s Minister of Industry and Mines Ali Akbar Mehrabian to Tajikistan,” the source at a MoEI said.
In the meantime, the Iranian delegation that is currently in Dushanbe held talks with Tajik Ministry of Energy and Industries Gul Sherali today. Iran plans to discuss with Tajikistan issues related to development of mineral resources.
The sides discussed opportunities of bilateral cooperation between Tajikistan and Iran in sectors like mechanical engineering, food and light industries as well as launch of joint ventures for leather processing and producing building materials in Tajikistan, the source said.
After the meeting, Iranian guests visited a number of industrial enterprises in Tajikistan, including the Dushanbe cement plant and the transformer-producing plant in Qurghon Teppa, the capital of Khatlon province.
We will recall that Mr. Mohammad Sorniye, Chief Advisor to Iran’s Ministry of Industry and Mines, heading the Iranian delegation arrived in Dushanbe on February 15 for a three-day working visit. The delegation members include representatives from Iranian business community who plan to study issues of investing in Tajikistan’s economy.
According to Agency for Statistics under the President of Tajikistan, a two-way trade between Tajikistan and Iran in 2010 valued at more than 201.7 million U.S. dollars. This consisted of Tajikistan’s exports to Iran estimated at more than US$60.1 million and Tajikistan’s imports from Iran worth more than US$141.6 million. Tajikistan exports mainly cotton fiber and cotton yarn to Iran, while Iran supplies mainly food products and building materials to Tajikistan.
