TEHRAN: Australian Ambassador to Iran Paul Foley said that Australian government plans to dispatch a delegation to help restore commercial ties with Iran regardless of US House of Representatives visa waiver program which included Iran visitors.
In a meeting with head of Tehran Chamber of Commerce, Industries and Agriculture Masoud Khansari, he said that Australia pays no attention to the proclaimed restrictions and its trade delegation is planning to visit Tehran.
‘Iran and Australia are strong in the filed of mineral undertakings and the area is able to have numerous exchanges,’ he said.
Earlier, many Australian companies operated in Iran but they shrank their activities due to severe sanctions and eventually they completely halted their work, he said.
According to Foley, Australian firms are eager to return to Iran.
The Australian envoy also said that his country is ready for cooperation with Iran in various sectors such as agriculture, education, mines and mining industries, oil, gas and service relating to the industries.
Canberra is interested to see the country’s economic activists visit Tehran to sit for talks with their commercial partners, Foley said.
Expressing optimism towards Iran-Australia relations, he contended that the two countries have suitable understanding about each other which will help promote mutual cooperation.
Khansari, for his part, recalled the history of Iran-Australia trade relations, saying that their trade ties were excellent in recent years but they fell due to the sanctions.
He said that after the approval of Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), some 80 trade delegations from European and Asian countries flocked to Iran but no Australian delegation has yet entered Iran.
It seems that the country’s economic activists have adopted conservative stance, he said.
