REUTERS
Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Hennadiy Zubko says that Ukraine's Cabinet of Ministers plans to take measures to boost exports of power engineering commodities to Iran, Turkey and Central Asian countries, namely Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, and Azerbaijan.
"Last and this year, the Cabinet held general commissions on measures to boost exports of commodities of our machine-building, namely power engineering, to Iran, Central Asian countries, i.e. Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, Azerbaijan, and Turkey, in order to have an opportunity to develop new sale markets and retain the former ones," he said during a recent Q&A session in parliament.
The Iranian market, which has remained inaccessible in the past decade due to international sanctions against that country, looks particularly promising for Ukraine, Zubko said.
In his words, Ukraine now expects to regain its lost share in the Iranian market after the sanctions have been lifted.
"As is known, a government commission [the Intergovernmental Ukrainian-Iranian Joint Commission for Economic and Trade Cooperation] held a session in Iran on March 8, as we are restoring our cooperation," Zubko said.
"Our delegation included employees of state enterprises that operated in Iran before and had contracts. And today they have documents needed for the modernization of energy facilities in Iran. It is important now to cancel the sanctions [levied by the Ukrainian authorities in the early 2000s following international sanctions]. There is a political decision on this issue, but it is also important to have a political decision by the UN Security Council on Iran. It is important that our engineering workers [who will start work in Iran] be protected. This matter is under consideration," Zubko said.
This year, Ukraine plans to resume cooperation with the Islamic Republic of Iran in political, trade, economic, cultural, humanitarian, and other areas after an 11-year break.
As was earlier reported, Ukraine's trade mission will be sent to Iran in May-June this year to meet with that country's business representatives.
Iran's Ambassador to Ukraine Mohammad Beheshti Monfared earlier said that Iran was interested in importing Ukrainian farm produce. Iran is said to have also offered to launch hydrocarbons shipments to Ukraine, while suggesting joint use of new transport corridors in the east.