Iran interested in Free Trade Zone with Eurasian Economic Union

Iran is interested in a free trade zone with the Eurasian Economic Union (EEU), Iranian ambassador to Russia Mehdi Sanaei said on Thursday.

The Eurasian Economic Union is a bloc created to streamline the flow of goods, capital and labor between its member nations, namely Russia, Kyrgyzstan, Armenia, Belarus, and Kazakhstan. The union came into being on January 1, 2015.

"Iran is interested in the introduction of a free trade regime with the EEU and considers that the establishment of closer ties with the union may become the basis for the development of economic cooperation of Iran with the association's member countries," Sanaei told the Gaidar Forum in Moscow, Sputnik reported.

The Eurasian Economic Commission chairman of the board said in December that the union considered Iran an interesting partner to create the free trade zone. Later that month, Russia's First Deputy Prime Minister Igor Shuvalov announced talks on the zone creation could be completed in the nearest future.

The ambassador added that Iran was particularly interested in economic projects of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) member states, the EEU and the Chinese Silk Road