Official: Exports Through Turkmen Border Crossing Jump 3-fold

Date: 05 November 2021 - 21:55

News ID: ۹۶۲۲۳

Tehran - the Governor of the Iranian Sarakhs county Muhammad Reza Rajabi said on Thursday that exports through a single border crossing with Turkmenistan have increased significantly following recent agreements between the two neighbors to expand energy and trade ties.
Rajabi said that the number of export trucks travelling to Turkmenistan through a single border crossing in the region had jumped three-fold to an average of 150 trucks per day over the past two weeks.
Rajabi said that the figure is a record high which exceeds numbers seen before the spread of the coronavirus in the region.
Iran relies on three border crossings with Turkmenistan for its growing exports to landlocked countries in the Central Asia region.
However, trade through the borders has faced problems in recent years both because of the pandemic and also because of an unresolved energy dispute between the two.
In a clear change of policy, Iranian authorities told a visiting delegation from Turkmenistan last month that Tehran will settle its natural gas debts to the country while trying to expand bilateral trade ties.
“Given the priorities of our country’s foreign policy and bilateral meetings between Iran and Turkmenistan, we have been witnessing a surge in border exchanges and a boom in trade flows,” said Rajabi.
The official added that Turkmenistan is expected to further ease pandemic-related restrictions imposed on trade in the near future by allowing Iranian fleet of trucks to enter the country.