With the outset of the 13th government and special emphasis of President Raeisi on enhancing relations between the Islamic Republic of Iran and all countries, especially neighboring countries, the visit of high-ranking officials of Iran and Qatar to Doha in March 2022 paved suitable ways for broadening mutual ties within the framework of joint economic commissions.
The two countries of Iran and Qatar enjoy high potential particularly in trade and economic fields so setting up the 8th meeting of the Iran-Qatar Joint Economic Commission would further boost bilateral cooperation in the fields.
The 8th meeting of the Iran-Qatar Joint Economic Commission, which was held on June 7 in the Qatari capital of Doha, discussed the two sides' bilateral cooperation in the form of five committees including "Economic, Commercial and Industrial", "Banking and Finance", "Transportation and Information Technology", "Scientific, Health, Culture, Sports and Tourism" and "Water and Energy" and practical steps will be taken in this regard to implement the agreements approved at the previous meetings.
At the 8th meeting of the Iran-Qatar Joint Economic Commission between Iran and Qatar, Iranian Energy Minister Ali Akbar Mehrabian, Head of Iran’s Trade Promotion Organization Alireza Peymanpak, Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister for Economic Diplomacy Mehdi Safari, along with officials from the Chamber of Commerce, Industries, Mines and Agriculture of Iran, and the most significant trade delegation, including private businessmen and representatives of 70 companies traveled to Qatar, indicating the Iranian government's full support for cooperation of the private sectors of the two countries.
An Iranian delegation headed by energy minister Ali Akbar Mehrabian attended the eighth meeting of the Joint Commission for Economic Cooperation between Iran and Qatar in Doha.
At the end of the joint commission meeting, Iran and Qatar inked a memorandum of understanding.
The MoU between Iran and Qatar is in the fields of transit, transportation, industry and trade, energy, customs, free zones, tourism, cultural heritage, agriculture, sports, etc.
The Iranian energy minister, who chaired the meeting of the joint commission, said that the 13th administration in Iran has focused on expanding relations with the world and regional countries and expressed hope to see a significant increase in bilateral relations between Tehran and Doha after the meeting.
"One of the most important goals of the meeting is to support the Iranian and Qatari private sectors, and we are happy to see that a large conference with the participation of Iranian businessmen is being held in Doha at the same time as the meeting of the joint commission," Mehrabian said
"During the day, eight very important memoranda of understanding on food, medical industry, knowledge-based companies, etc. have been signed between businessmen of the two countries, which indicates the existence of a suitable market for the two countries," he added.
The Iranian energy minister continued that Iran and Qatar have set financial goals for 2023 and hope to see doubled economic relations and trade balance between the two countries.
Referring to the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, Mehrabian said that the Qatar World Cup is definitely one of the golden opportunities for business people, which can enhance economic and trade relations between the two countries in various ways.
Head of the Trade Promotion Organization of Iran (TPOI) Alireza Peyman-Pak announced the launch of the Iran Trade Center in Qatar in near future.
Referring to the Iranian administration's plan to boost trade, especially with neighboring countries, he said that holding an exhibition and introducing Iran's industrial and commercial capabilities to Qatari traders is on the agenda.
An exhibition of Qatar's trade capabilities will also be held in Iran, he added.
The Iran Trade Center in Qatar will be opened soon, and the Iranian Trade Advisor in Qatar will start working, Peyman-Pak said.
He noted that $1 billion in trade with the neighboring country of Qatar is on Iran's agenda.
With regards to the upcoming visit of the Iranian President to Qatar, he said, “participating in Gas Exporting Countries Forum (GECF) and holding bilateral talks with senior Qatari officials have been cited as the two main aims behind the upcoming visit of Iranian President Raeisi to Qatar.”
He put the current trade volume exchanged between Iran and Qatar at about $300 and $400 million which is very negligible and stated, “With the planning made in this regard, it is expected that bilateral trade between the two countries will increase to $1 billion next year.”
Cooperating in the field of industrial development for exporting products to third countries and using high capacities and capabilities of Qatar for the development of value chain and transit are the other issues with regards to expanding trade ties between the two countries, he added.
Considering the good political relations between Iran and Qatar, putting the next step in supporting the private sector for the development of trade relations is one of the most important goals of the two countries, which is possible by removing barriers and developing infrastructure, on the other hand, the private sector also plays a pivotal role, which by doing it properly, we will see a big development in trade between Iran and Qatar.
Ayatollah Seyyed Ebrahim Raeisi received the visiting Qatari Foreign minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani for a meeting in Tehran, Iran.
In the meeting, Raeisi referred to the importance of regional cooperation and said, "Deepening relations and further synergy among neighboring countries can create security."
Emphasizing the importance of multilateral mechanisms in ensuring security, especially in the field of energy, Raeisi stated, "It is necessary to maintain and strengthen coordination and synergy in the energy policies of producing countries."
The Qatari foreign minister extended an official invitation to the president of Iran to take part in the Gas Exporting Countries Forum (GECF) on the part of the Emir of Qatar and said "Qatar is determined to make utmost efforts to increase relations with the Islamic Republic of Iran in various political and economic fields, and the Emir of Qatar is personally following up on the development of relations between the two countries.”
Iran's President Ebrahim Raeisi departed for Qatar to meet Qatari Emir and attend a Summit Meeting of the Gas Exporting Countries Forum (GECF).
Before leaving Tehran for Doha, President Raeisi told reporters that he is traveling to Qatar at the official invitation of Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani.
Improving friendly and brotherly relations between Iran and neighboring Qatar and attending the Summit Meeting of the Gas Exporting Countries Forum (GECF) are the goals of this visit to Doha, he explained.
Referring to the Summit Meeting of the Gas Exporting Countries Forum (GECF), he said that Iran is one of the founders of the forum and the country is one of the important exporters and producers of gas in the region.
He also expressed hope that the trip will bring positive effects on the promotion of political, economic, and trade relations between regional countries, especially the countries of the Persian Gulf.
The president's visit to Qatar comes at a time when the last time an Iranian president visited Qatar was eleven years ago. Before leaving Tehran for Doha, President Raeisi told reporters that his visit to Qatar is a step towards activating neighborhood diplomacy, especially with the Persian Gulf states, and using the capacities of these states to develop political and economic relations.
In recent years, Tehran-Doha relations have witnessed tangible progress in all areas of economic, political, cultural, energy, and border cooperation. This is the result of the attention of the officials of the two countries, who are working to expand and develop bilateral relations and strive to enhance cooperation to the highest levels.
During the first day of the visit of the Iranian President Ebrahim Raeisi to Qatar, contracts in the different political, economic, cultural, and sports fields were signed by the Iranian and Qatari ministers in the presence of the Emir of Qatar Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani and the Iranian president Ebrahim Raeisi.
The 14 signed cooperation documents are in the fields of aviation, trade, shipping, radio and television, visa cancellation, electricity, standards, culture, and education.
Iran is one of the few countries in the world that has more than a dozen maritime and land neighbors. Iran has a total of 15 neighbors of which seven share land borders while the remaining shares maritime borders with Iran.
So far, the foreign policy record of Raeisi and Amir Abdollahian has been a success. The first achievement in this regard was Iran’s permanent membership in the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (ECO) which was achieved during the first foreign visit by Raeisi to Tajikistan.
The president himself described the membership as a “diplomatic success” in line with his neighborhood policy.
Earlier in March of that year, the president had said that “ECO constitutes a priority in the paradigm governing Iran’s regional and neighborhood policies.”
Raeisi similarly assessed his trip to Qatar. He said the visit was in line with the neighborhood policy.
He said that his administration has put a lot of energy and effort into developing Iran’s relations with its neighbors. According to Raeisi, shoring up ties with neighbors is at the center of his plan to develop foreign relations.
“In the months since the beginning of the Popular Administration, relations with neighbors have tripled with some countries, indicating that little attention was paid to these capacities in the past,” the president said, taking a jab at derelictions that occurred during the previous administrations.
Iranian President Seyyed Ebrahim Raeisi said that setting up the Iranian trade and business center in Qatar will cause the introduction of high capability and capacity of the country to Qatari entrepreneurs and traders.
President Raeisi made the remarks in his meeting with Sheikh Khalid bin Khalifa bin Abdulaziz Al Thani, Prime Minister of Qatar in Doha, and emphasized that “today, the Islamic Republic of Iran has gained salient achievements in various fields in international arenas.”
During the meeting, President Raeisi described relations between the two countries of Iran and Qatar “as very deep, friendly and amicable”.
He went on to say that there are good political, economic, cultural, and social ties between the two nations but this level of relations is not commensurate with the existing capacities of the two countries.
Qatari prime minister, for his turn, termed the visit of the President of Iran to Qatar ‘historic and significant’ and added that the two countries enjoy high capabilities and potential to expand their relations in all fields.
Iran and Qatar signed a bilateral operational agreement to link Doha aviation information with Iran's aviation information territory.
An agreement was also signed to increase the number of flights between Qatar and Iran, in the presence of the Qatari Minister of transport & communications, Jassim bin Saif Al-Sulaiti and the Iranian Minister of Roads and Urban Development Rostam Ghasemi.
Ghasemi revealed his talk with his Qatari counterpart to set up regular shipping lines between the two countries' ports.
In addition, the two sides agreed to make more use of Qatari commercial airlines over the Iranian sky, he noted.
During the meeting of the Iranian Minister of Roads and Urban Development with his Qatari counterpart and with the presence of the Qatari Emir, four agreements in the fields of transit, shipping, and air transport were signed.
Rostam Ghasemi discussed establishing regular shipping lines and transit transportation, as well as increasing flights between Iran and Qatar with his Qatari counterpart.
Four agreements were also signed between Iran and Qatar with the presence of the Qatari President Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani and the Emir of Qatar.
Iran's Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian and his Qatari counterpart Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani held a meeting in Doha.
In this meeting, the two top diplomats discussed the latest developments in the relations between the two countries in various political, and economic fields as well as the issues related to Iranians living in Qatar.
The Iranian minister thanked Qatar for their hospitality and the good hosting of the 6th GECF Summit and described the visit of President Raieis to Doha and the meeting with the Emir of Qatar as an accelerator to bilateral relations.
Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani, for his part, attached great importance to the meeting between Raeisi and the Emir of Qatar and stressed the need to implement the decisions of high-ranking officials of the two countries.
The Foreign Ministers of the Islamic Republic of Iran and Qatar also discussed important issues and developments related to the Vienna talks, as well as regional issues, including Afghanistan and Yemen.
Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, the Emir of Qatar paid a one-day visit to Tehran at the invitation of Iranian President Seyyed Ebrahim Raeisi.
The Qatari Emir and a high-ranking political-economic delegation who accompanied him on his trip were officially welcomed by Iranian First Vice President Mohmmad Mokhber upon their arrival at Mehrabad International Airport.
In a meeting with the Emir of Qatar, Mokhber referred to the level of relations between Tehran and Doha, and appreciated Qatar's position on regional and international issues, especially towards the Islamic Republic of Iran.
Referring to the meetings of senior officials of the two countries and the agreements reached for joint cooperation in holding the World Cup Qatar 2022, Mokhber announced the readiness of the Islamic Republic of Iran to cooperate with Qatar in holding these competitions.
The relations between Iran and Qatar are strong and stable and based on a sense of neighborliness, Qatari Emir said, calling for the expansion of relations between Tehran and Doha.
Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani made the remarks in a joint press conference with Iranian President Ebrahim Raeisi.
"Today, we discussed various issues, and during the talks, we emphasized that resolving disputes in the region is possible only through dialogue," he said referring to his meeting with the Iranian President.
To make a long story short, when Raeisi took over as president in August 2021, Iran’s relations with most neighbors were either politically tense or economically stagnant. And that had to change. The new president and his foreign policy team assumed power with a clear foreign policy vision in mind: Neighborhood Policy. Now, every single Iranian acknowledges that the Neighborhood Policy has paid off. Today, between Iran and Qatar. The story of the Policy will be continued!
Compiled and translated by Amin Mohammadzadegan Khoyi
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