Speaking on the sidelines of a meeting with Iranian traders and businesspeople based in Russia in Moscow on Monday evening, Madanizadeh said Russia offers significant potential to expand bilateral trade and could play a greater role in meeting Iran’s import needs while providing a major market for Iranian exports.
“Russia has considerable economic potential for expanding trade relations with Iran,” Madanizadeh said, according to Iran’s Ministry of Economic Affairs and Finance. He pointed to opportunities for Russia to supply Iran with essential commodities, including staple goods, grains and vegetable oils, while also serving as a destination for a broader range of Iranian products.
A portion of such trade is already taking place, he said, but greater use of the two countries’ economic capacities would require addressing financial, customs and infrastructure-related barriers raised by Iranian businesses operating in Russia.
Madanizadeh said traders at the meeting outlined difficulties involving banking and financial transactions, customs procedures and transport infrastructure, while also proposing ways to ease the obstacles.
Some of the problems were related to banking and financial mechanisms and would need to be addressed in coordination with Iran’s central bank, he said. Other obstacles concerned customs procedures and were being pursued by the Economy Ministry.
The minister said his ministry had been working for several months to remove customs barriers and that new proposals were under consideration. If approved by the Cabinet, the measures could create new facilitation mechanisms at customs offices and address a number of concerns raised by Iranian traders.
Madanizadeh also described the activation and expansion of Iran’s northern border crossings as a strategic response to constraints affecting maritime trade routes in the south.
“We must be able to counter the effects of restrictions on our southern borders and shift a significant share of the country’s exports and imports toward northern borders and overland routes,” he said.
Such a shift, Madanizadeh argued, could diversify Iran’s trade corridors, reduce its dependence on southern maritime routes and strengthen the resilience of the economy against sanctions and external economic pressure.
The minister said negotiations with Russian officials during his visit had resulted in agreements that could open new avenues for bilateral economic and commercial cooperation.
“These openings can help strengthen the resilience of Iran’s economy against sanctions and economic pressure and lay the groundwork for expanding trade and economic engagement between the two countries,” he said.
Madanizadeh is in Moscow for talks with senior Russian economic officials aimed at advancing bilateral economic ties. The meeting with Iranian businesspeople was attended by Kazem Jalali, Iran’s ambassador to Russia, along with a number of Iranian traders and business representatives living and operating in the country.