January 4, The Iran Project – Turkish Minister of Economy says signing Preferential Trade Agreement (PTA) with Iran can boost Tehran-Ankara’s economic and trade ties, expressing hope that the two countries can eventually sign free trade agreement.

Nihat Zeybekçi, in a meeting with Iran’s Minister of Industry, Mine and Trade Mohammadreza Nematzadeh who arrived in Turkish capital on Tuesday, referred to Iran nuclear deal with the world powers, stressing the importance of lifting Iran’s banking restrictions on increasing Tehran economic ties with Ankara.

Elsewhere in his remarks, Zeybekçi said rising Iran and Turkey’s regional power depends on enhancing the two countries’ relations, cooperation, and solidarity different sections.

Turkey’s Economy Minister also heads Iran-Turkey Joint Economic Commission, in order to discuss standards applied by Turkey to certain Iranian export goods as well as expansion of the list of commodities subject to preferential trade agreement between the two neighboring countries.

Iran’s Minister of Industry, Mine and Trade, for his part, emphasized the importance of Tehran-Ankara’s economic relations and the 30-billion-dollar outlook in Iran-Turkey commercial ties, and said we should remove the barriers to trade development.

Referring to banking problems as one of the main obstacles to Tehran-Ankara’s trade development, Nematzadeh said Iran-Turkey’s banking relations should further be developed and the two countries’ economic activists be provided with the facilities required for the enhancing of trade ties.

He also noted that to develop Iran-Turkey's economic and trade ties, we should look beyond preferential trade agreement, and focus on signing free trade agreement.