Iraq and Iran boost bilateral trade with new customs agreement

Shafaq News/ The Iraqi General Authority of Customs and its Iranian counterpart signed a new agreement to facilitate customs procedures between the two countries.

According to the Iranian Tasnim news agency, the agreement was finalized between the director general of Iraqi Customs, Hassan Hassani, and the head of the Iranian Customs Administration, Mohammad Rezvanifar.

The talks included discussions about plans to sign agreements for cooperation and administrative assistance in customs affairs to streamline the electronic exchange of customs information, simplify customs procedures at shared borders, facilitate temporary car transit, establish dedicated parking areas for trucks, and ensure compliance with health and quarantine regulations at border customs.

Hassani emphasized "Iran as one of Iraq's key trading partners," prioritizing bolstering trade relations between the two countries and hoping to grow customs cooperation to address common challenges and improve trade efficiency.

Director Hassani also pledged ongoing coordination between the Iraqi and Kurdistan regional governments to implement unified customs practices.

Regarding fuel smuggling along the border, he affirmed Iraqi customs' readiness to work closely with Iranian counterparts to combat this problem.

For his part, Rezvanifar underscored the necessity of "coordination and cooperation between Iraq and Iran." Expressing the Iranian customs to exchange information with Iraqi customs to facilitate trade and enhance the International Road Transport (TIR) capacity."

Iraq boasts five official crossings along its 1,599-kilometer (about 1,000-mile) border with Iran: Mandali-Sumar, Almunthrya-Khosravi, Zurbatiyah-Mehran, Chazabeh, and Shalamcheh. Additionally, there are three border crossings between Iraq and Iraqi Kurdistan: Haji Omeran-Tamarchin, Penjwen-Bashmaq, Parviz Khan, and Sayran Ban.