TEHRAN, February 25. /TASS/. Moscow expects the agreement on free trade between the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) and Iran to take force in the near future, which will drive up trade turnover, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov told a news conference following talks with his Iranian counterpart Abbas Araghchi.
"Our contacts continue in multisided format as well, first of all in the context of Iran being granted a Eurasian Economic Union observer status," he said. "We expect the intergovernmental agreement on free trade between members of the Eurasian Economic Union and Iran to take force in the near future. This will surely drive up trade turnover throughout our space with Iranian neighbors," the minister added.
Russia expects the date of the meeting of the Russian-Iranian intergovernmental commission on trade-economic cooperation to be defined in coming months, he noted.
"Despite the well-known illegal sanctions restrictions, our trade demonstrates positive dynamics. Last year trade turnover grew by more than 13%. There is every reason to suppose that this trend will persist," Lavrov said.
Iran's Ambassador to Moscow Kazem Jalali said earlier that the agreement with the Eurasian Economic Union on a free trade zone would be implemented in 2025, after which 87% of all goods would be tax exempt.