Iran eyes increased trade with Afghanistan

TEHRAN, July 1 (UPI) -- Iran plans to nearly double the amount of trade with its neighbors in Afghanistan, the Iranian minister of commerce said.

Sayyed Masoud Mir Kazemi said during a meeting with his Afghan counterpart that trade between the two Asian neighbors would increase from $600 million to $1 billion within the next two years.

The Iranian minister said there were scores of Iranian engineers and businessmen active in as many as 120 projects throughout Afghanistan, the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting network reports.

Iran has moved in a bilateral fashion to address issues related to Afghanistan and Pakistan, though those efforts mirror many of the international strategies apart from military commitments.

The U.N. Office on Drugs and Crime lauded Iranian efforts recently in curbing the Afghan narcotics trade, while Iran moved independently to help train Afghan police.

Iran also held a trilateral meeting with Pakistan and Afghan officials in May to address regional security issues and trilateral cooperation.

Wahidullah Shahrani, the Afghan commerce minister, thanked Iran for its growing patronage with his country, expressing a desire to move forward to solidify a strong trading partner in Iran.