Tabnak - After conducting a two-day diplomatic tour to Syria and Turkey, Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif came back to Tehran Thursday morning. Although regional and bilateral issues consisted a part of the agenda of his meetings in the two countries, he has reportedly been successful in reaching some important agreements with the Turkish officials on economic issues.
Zarif described his recent visit to Syria and Turkey as a “successful regional trip”, stressing that the Islamic Republic attaches importance to enhanced relations with neighboring countries.
“Ending a successful regional trip—held important talks on ties & regional developments w/ President Assad, PM & FM of Syria; and with President Erdogan, Speaker of Parliament & FM of Turkey, & other senior officials in both capitals. For Iran, our region is always our priority,” Zarif tweeted on Thursday after wrapping up his two-day visit to Damascus and Ankara.
On Wednesday, the top Iranian diplomat held talks with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. During the meeting, the two sides said that Ankara and Tehran needed to promote cooperation, including in the economic sector, in line with their agreements in the face of US sanctions.
Earlier in the day, Zarif also held talks and later attended a joint press conference with his Turkish counterpart Mevlut Cavusoglu, during which Turkey's top diplomat said his country has told and will continue to tell the United States that the sanctions against Iran are “wrong.”
In this vein, Zarif announced plans for the launch a financial mechanism between Tehran and Ankara similar to INSTEX, the payment channel that the three EU signatories to the 2015 Iran nuclear deal have set up to maintain trade with Tehran.
Speaking to reporters in Ankara before returning to Tehran on Thursday, the top Iranian diplomat said the Turkish side has always opposed the US sanctions against Iran and is looking for methods to maintain cooperation with Iran despite the sanctions.
Zarif said the two countries have agreed to pursue closer trade ties in a special manner, pointing to plans for preferential tariff treatment, cooperation in the energy industry, banking interaction, using common currencies for businesses, and the establishment of mechanism akin to INSTEX.
The US administration has taken a hostile approach toward Iran. That approach intensified last year when Donald Trump unilaterally withdrew America from the Iran nuclear deal, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), and imposed sanctions against the country.
In late January, Iran’s European partners in the JCPOA -- the UK, France and Germany-- unveiled INSTEX, a non-dollar direct payment channel, with the aim of protecting their companies against US sanctions and enabling them to continue trade with Iran, following Washington’s withdrawal from the nuclear accord and reimposition of its sanctions.
