Iran Chamber chief proposes joint committee to expand trade with Mexico

The president of Iran Chamber of Commerce, Industries, Mines and Agriculture has proposed establishing a joint committee with Mexico to help expand trade and investment ties between the two countries.

Samad Hassanzadeh made the proposal during a meeting with Guillermo Puente Ordorica, Mexico’s ambassador to Tehran, held to discuss ways of strengthening bilateral economic cooperation. Hassanzadeh said Iran and Mexico have considerable capacities in trade and investment, but the level of economic exchanges between the two countries is currently limited and should be increased through greater cooperation. He proposed the formation of a joint committee as a mechanism for facilitating the development of bilateral trade ties. The committee, he said, could facilitate the exchange of economic information between the two sides and help identify opportunities for cooperation. Hassanzadeh also said the committee could make use of Iran’s and Mexico’s economic relations with other countries, potentially creating additional opportunities for businesses from the two countries. He said Iran has considerable capabilities in areas including new agricultural technologies, industry and artificial intelligence, adding that the Iran Chamber of Commerce was ready to host Mexican trade delegations interested in these fields. Technical and engineering services, large-scale contracting projects and Iranian medical equipment were also among the areas Hassanzadeh identified as having potential for cooperation. He said Iran could increase exports to Mexico of petrochemical products, minerals and mining products, agricultural goods, new agricultural technologies, sweets and chocolate, carpets, chemical fertilizers, industrial equipment and technical and engineering services. Hassanzadeh also pointed to tourism and health tourism as potential areas for closer cooperation, while saying that joint investment could help create longer-term economic ties between businesses from the two countries. He said the Iranian side welcomed such investment. Puente Ordorica welcomed Hassanzadeh’s proposal for establishing the joint committee and expressed optimism about the prospects for future cooperation between Iran and Mexico. The ambassador said the two countries have a history of relations but that their current economic exchanges remain limited. He noted that he had arrived in Iran during the COVID-19 period and that the pandemic, followed by the US sanctions against Iran, had hindered the development of bilateral cooperation. He said Mexico’s new government has an economic program aimed at developing cooperation with countries around the world, including through foreign investment, and that there are opportunities for expanding trade relations. The Mexican ambassador also stressed the importance of connecting the Iran Chamber of Commerce with Mexican private companies within an established framework and welcomed the exchange of trade delegations. Puente Ordorica said he was familiar with Iran’s potential in health tourism and viewed the field as an area suitable for cooperation. He also pointed to Mexico’s capabilities in automobiles, auto parts and heavy industries as other fields where the two countries could cooperate. He suggested that the two sides should first establish the joint committee, followed by the exchange of trade delegations, and then take further steps after gaining a better understanding of each other’s economic and industrial capabilities.