TEHRAN (FNA) - Danish Maersk International Maritime Transportation Company voiced readiness to resume transportation of goods to Iran.
Maersk that had cut its trade relations with Iran five years ago due to the sanctions imposed by the West on Iran announced that it will resume its activities in Iran soon.
Maersk announced that its customers can send their cargo to Iran via sea by Maersk cargo ships.
A major portion of imports, including foodstuff and consumer goods such as cars, to Iran takes place via sea.
In early January, the world’s second biggest container shipping line, MSC, had become the latest firm to resume direct services to Iran.
The deal reached over Tehran’s nuclear program in exchange for sanctions annulment came into effect in January.
Iran had depended on foreign ships for much of its imports, but has relied more on land routes and its own commercial fleet, particularly since 2012, as layers of sanctions led to an exodus of Western shipping firms.
Following the nuclear agreement last year between Tehran and the world powers, foreign container lines started to trade with Iran, although companies fear they may still fall foul of sanctions, which include restrictions on banking, Hellenic shipping news reported.
Privately owned Swiss-based MSC said its first ship arrived at Iran’s major container port Bandar Abbas on Dec. 31 as part of weekly calls, "paving the way” for deeper business ties.
MSC had suspended services between 2012 to April 2014 and after that only provided shipments using smaller feeder ships via third parties that shipped containers to Iran from Jebel Ali in the United Arab Emirates.