Iran Committed to ECO Agenda

EghtesadOnline: Iran is committed to the Economic Cooperation Organization and its programs and projects, the top Iranian diplomat said.

News ID: ۷۴۸۹۰۸

10 November 2019

"Iran remains ready and active in sharing with ECO countries its huge capacities in [various] sectors," Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said at the 24th neeting of the ECO Council of Ministers in Antalya on Saturday.

He added that this is an open call on behalf of Iran’s private sector to its counterparts in the ECO region.

The Economic Cooperation Organization was founded in 1985 in Tehran by the leaders of Iran, Pakistan and Turkey, but now has 10 full members. The Council of Ministers is the highest policy and decision-making body within the organization, Financial Tribune reported.

Zarif stressed that ECO remains "an untapped potential" for economic integration and cohesion in the region, which has all it takes to be a success story for multilateral cooperation among nations.

ECO Vision 2025

Zarif called on the Council of Ministers to give full support to the sectoral ministers as well as the secretariat to accelerate the effective implementation of the ECO Vision 2025.

The ECO Vision 2025 is a plan to promote cooperation in six priority areas, namely trade, transport and connectivity, energy, tourism, economic growth and productivity, and social welfare and environment.

Pointing to the development of transport corridora as an institutional priority, he urged member states to advance major projects that are awaiting implementation, particularly the "Transit and Transport Framework Agreement."

The Iranian foreign minister stressed that ECO countries also need to simplify and harmonize their regional trade to increase transactions.

"Conducting financial transactions with national currencies, bartering, cutting costs, reducing delays and speeding up customs clearance are approaches that need to be strengthened," he added.

He also called for forging tourism cooperation as a major objective of the ECO Vision 2025 by developing a smart plan of action.

ICT-related activities can also serve as catalyst for further progress, Zarif said, highlighting the importance of implementing the "2025 ECO Regional Strategy for Information Society Development".

"We consider ECO inter-connectivity projects in transport and transit, energy, including ECO electricity market, ICT and digital connections, and tourism industry as the most feasible and profitable joint ventures among our countries," he said.