Afghanistan is the second destination for Iran’s non-oil exports; annual trade exceeds $3 billion
Afghan Voice Agency (AVA) – Mashhad: Manouchehr Mottaki, a member of the Economic Commission of the Islamic Consultative Assembly of Iran, said on Thursday, on the sidelines of a visit to the official Dogharoon border crossing in the city of Taybad, Khorasan Razavi Province, in an interview with reporters, referring to Afghanistan’s position in Iran’s foreign trade: “Afghanistan is the second destination for Iran’s non-oil exports and the annual trade volume with this eastern neighbor is estimated to be more than $3 billion.”
According to IRNA, Mottaki, referring to the presence and investment of Afghan economic activists in different parts of the world, noted that, given the special conditions of Afghanistan, businessmen from this country have made significant investments in various areas of Iran over the past few years and their willingness to invest in Iran has increased compared to the past.
Emphasizing the special approach of the Iranian government to support Iranian and foreign economic activists, he considered this approach to be the basis for increasing investment opportunities throughout the country.
This member of the Iranian Parliament's Economic Commission also stated that examining the obstacles and problems in the field of economic activities of Khorasan Razavi Province with neighboring countries was one of the most important goals of the commission members' trip to border areas, including Sarakhs and Taybad.
Dogharoon; the most important corridor in eastern Iran
Mottaki described the Dogharoon crossing as the most important corridor in eastern Iran and emphasized the need to exploit this capacity in line with the growth and prosperity of transportation and the economy of this country.
Mehdi Toghiani, Deputy Chairman of the Economic Commission of the Islamic Consultative Assembly of Iran, also described the Dogharoon Free Trade and Industrial Zone as one of the most important economic zones in the country, operating in an area of 8,700 hectares.
Referring to Afghanistan's trade capacities, he said: "Afghanistan is a golden opportunity for importing goods to Dogharoon, which, by carrying out some processes and processing raw materials, will provide the basis for re-exporting items from the Dogharoon Free Trade Zone Organization to this neighboring country."
The Deputy Chairman of the Economic Commission of the Iranian Parliament considered the volume of exchanges between this country and Afghanistan through Dogharoon to indicate the strategic position of this official border and stated: "Increasing investment and supporting economic activists will turn this zone into one of the country's top free zones in the long term."
Daily traffic of 1,200 trucks/lorries through the Dogharun border
Hossein Jamshidi, the governor of Taybad, Iran, also announced during this visit that more than 1,200 Iranian and foreign trucks/lorries pass through the two borders of Islam Qala and Dogharun daily.
Pointing to the negative effects of the lack of necessary infrastructure and the lack of some facilities in Afghanistan on the economic activities of Dogharun, he called for greater support from the state agencies in charge to reduce the obstacles facing this crossing.
It is worth noting that the trip program of the members of the Economic Commission of the Islamic Consultative Assembly of Iran to the Dogharun border included visiting the plans of the Dogharun Free Trade and Industrial Zone Organization, visiting the truck X-ray machine, and talking to Iranian and Afghan drivers.
The Dogharun/Islam Qala border crossing, as one of the most active border terminals in Iran, is located 120 kilometers from the Afghan city of Herat and 18 kilometers from the Iranian city of Taybad. Taybad is located 225 kilometers southeast of Mashhad, the capital of Khorasan Razavi Province in Iran.