Zanjan Province, Russia’s Chelyabinsk Oblast have potentials for long-term collaboration
![Zanjan Province, Russia’s Chelyabinsk Oblast have potentials for long-term collaboration](https://avadiplomatic.com/en/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/Zanjan-Province-Russia’s-Chelyabinsk-Oblast-have-potentials-for-long-term-collaboration.jpg)
At a meeting with Zanjan governor and the accompanied delegation on Tuesday, Chelyabinsk governor said 10 to 15 percent of Iran’s industry is produced in this northwestern province, AVA Diplomatic reports.
Jamshid Ansari said he is glad that the Chelyabinsk delegation visited the province and got familiar with the provincial capabilities. He noted that Zanjan and Chelyabinsk have capacities for long-term bilateral cooperation.
The province is a hub for three branches of industry including textile, lead and zinc, the governor said. Sixty percent of Iran’s lead and zinc as well as 20 percent of the country’s electricity are produced in Zanjan province, he added.
Referring to the unique strategic and transit location of Zanjan, Ansari said that land roads and railroads connecting Iran to Europe and to Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan in Central Asia pass through the province.
He noted that in line with a government decision, the country’s first logistics center will be set up in Zanjan province.
In spite of incompatibility between Iranian and Russian railroads in terms of their width, Ansari said that Iran can be connected to Chelyabinsk through Kazakhstan.
Zanjan governor also referred to abundant provincial agricultural products and noted that its dairy and protein products in excess of the provincial needs are exported to other countries or used in local markets.
The meeting was attended by Minister of Economic Development, Agriculture, Science and Technology, Deputy Minister for Economic Business Development, Chief of Protocol, and a number of other officials of Chelyabinsk Oblast.
Accompanied by the Chelyabinsk delegation, Russia’s ambassador to Iran Levan Jagarian said that despite the high level of bilateral cooperation between Iran and Russia, the volume of trade between the two countries is not satisfactory. Chelyabinsk Oblast is a Russian federal unit with an area of 88,500 square kilometers and a population of over 3.5 million. It is an industrial and manufacturing region of Russia and because of its favorable geographical location, it plays an important role in the field of transportation in Russia.