Iran, Germany Keen to Broaden Trade, Economic Ties

German diplomat Marian Schuegraf announced that Tehran and Berlin are determined to broaden their relations in different areas, AVA Diplomatic reports.

“Iran and Germany will broaden their cooperation in trade, economic and political fields,” Schuegraf said in a meeting with Sistan-Balouchestan governor general in the port city of Chabahar on Wednesday.

The German diplomat reiterated that Chabahar port city enjoys abundant opportunities for investment of German investors.

“The capacities of Chabahar should be further explained to the German businessmen and investors,” Schuegraf added. The German diplomat said that his country is keen to invest in Iran’s Chabahar port city.

Last week, Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif in a meeting with German Deputy Foreign Minister Markus Ederer in Tehran called for the broadening of trade and economic relations.

“Tehran and Berlin should try to boost the volume of their trade exchanges and engage in joint venture cooperation,” Zarif said.

He underlined that unlike other European and western countries, Germany is not pursuing the regional affairs through a negative outlook and this is an important factor for trans-regional players who are looking for peaceful approaches to come out of the regional crises.

Earlier this month, Tehran and Berlin signed five memoranda of understanding (MoUs) to further expand their bilateral ties as German Insurance Company, Hermes, agreed to resume cooperation with Iran.

The cooperation pacts between Iran and Germany were signed by Iranian Deputy Economy Minister Mohammad Khazayee and his German counterpart Uwe Beckmeyer on the sidelines of Iran-Germany Trade Conference in Tehran.

Khazayee, meantime, announced that Germany’s Hermes Insurance Company has agreed to resume operation in Iran and provide insurance coverage to the ceiling of 7 million euros.

The Iranian deputy economy minister said that Iran and Germany also agreed to boost their banking cooperation, “The agreements between the two sides and restoration of insurance coverage by Hermes Insurance Company will bring back to the track economic transactions and joint investments between the two countries.”

The German Siemens Company signed two MoUs with Tehran University and an Iranian company. Iran’s Chamber of Commerce and Germany’s Counseling Services Institute also signed an MoU.

Over 150 experts from Germany’s governmental and private sectors attended Iran-Germany Trade Conference in Tehran today.

The Iran-Germany Joint Economic Commission’s meeting opened on May 2 and will last for two days. It is for the first time after 15 years that the Iran-Germany Joint Economic Commission is held in Iran. The last meeting was held in 2001.

German companies are mostly dissatisfied with Merkel’s distance from Iran, especially under the current circumstances when French President Francois Hollande and Italian PM Matteo Renzi have hosted President Rouhani in January and signed various MoUs with Tehran.

One key factor preventing many German companies from investing in Iran and signing contracts with Iranian firms is the lack of banking guarantees. German businessmen hope the issue will be resolved during the visit.

However, Iran and Germany are poised to boost their petrochemical ties given the readiness indicated by both sides in this regard following the removal of the international sanctions against Tehran.

Head of Iran’s National Petrochemical Company (NPC) Marziyeh Shahdaei said that NPC and German companies are planning to boost their interactions now that US-led sanctions on Tehran’s nuclear program have been partly lifted.

In a meeting with German Ambassador to Tehran Michael von Ungern-Sternberg, Shahdaei highlighted her recent visit to Berlin and called for enhancement of petrochemical ties with German companies.

“We are glad to enjoy the companionship and investment of German companies and we held several talk sessions with German companies during my Berlin visit,” she said.

The Iranian official said she held talks with representatives of over 250 German companies during her visit to Berlin earlier this year.

Ambassador Ungern-Sternberg underscored the historical presence of German companies in Iran, expressing hope that Iran and Germany will restore their cooperation in petrochemical projects.

“German companies have already signaled their interest to join petrochemical projects in Iran with the aim of promoting the industry in the country,” he added.