IRNA � Turkish Ambassador to Tehran Hakan Tekin says that the parties to the July 2015 nuclear deal known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) should not defer fulfilling their commitments.


Of course, the successful conclusion of the JCPOA and its implementation in January 2016 was an important milestone not only in President Rouhani�s first term, but also in Islamic Republic�s recent history, Tekin said in an interview with IRNA.

Lifting of nuclear-related sanctions provided ground for re-integration of Iran with the wider world; however, the challenges still remain in this regard, said the diplomat adding, �We hope that all parties to the JCPOA will continue to abide by their obligations and will not take steps that will be tantamount to evading their commitments.�

He further referred to the May 19 presidential election in Iran, saying, �We welcome and salute the choice of Iranian people which we hope will contribute to peace, stability and prosperity of both Iran and our region.�

�We know that there is some frustration and disappointment in Iran on the financial benefits of this deal.

�But we should not forget that in today�s world, the private sector is at the forefront of economic development and progress. Private companies as well as banks have to gauge their own risks and consider the consequences of their steps when they make a decision about making business with a country,� the Turkish ambassador noted.

�This is of course valid for Iran as for any other country. Hence, any concrete step that improves the business climate in Iran, increases transparency in economic life, enhances free and fair competition, alleviates the long existing structural problems will certainly attract more foreign business to Iran.

�We are confident that under the leadership of President Rouhani, the 12th Government of Iran will redouble its efforts in this direction.�

While there was success in the nuclear deal, unfortunately the conflicts and tensions in our region further compounded in the last four years, Tekin said when pointing to the regional tensions.

�We are even seeing additional tensions emerging. We need a common effort to contain and overcome this situation. Each and every country in the region should play a role to this end.

�There is growing mistrust in region taking sectarian, ethnic and political tones. We need to bridge this increasing gulf of mistrust in our region. That is the first step for finding lasting solutions to the deepening problems we are facing.

�We sincerely hope to see a positive breakthrough to this end during the second term of President Rouhani, one that is similar to the nuclear file in his first term,� the diplomat added.

Talking of the bilateral front, Tekin said the relations between Turkey and Iran, which are traditionally close and active in various spheres, have entered into a new phase of dynamism during the first term of President Rouhani.

�In his second term, we hope to harness this dynamism to achieve further concrete results with a win-win approach.�

�Despite some differences especially on regional matters, we never stopped our engagement and dialogue with Iran with a view to minimizing these differences and expanding our commonalities to the extent possible.

�The ongoing serious challenges we all face in the region makes this sort of engagement even more pertinent and indispensable.�

Establishment and holding of the first session of the High-Level Cooperation Council (HLCC) between our countries during President Rouhani�s visit to Turkey in June 2014 was one of the high-points with regard to our bilateral relations in this period, Tekin went on to say noting, �This mechanism has served as an instrument to monitor the existing relations and cooperation projects as well as to seek new avenues to further our ties at the highest level.�

The second and third sessions of the HLCC were held during President Erdo?an�s visit to Tehran in April 2015 and President Rouhani�s visit to Ankara in April 2016 respectively, the diplomat added.

In line with this trend, President Erdo?an is envisaged to visit Iran later this year, he further announced.

�We are working on to hold the 26th session of the Joint Economic Commission in Tehran to pave the ground for this visit.

�In fact in the coming weeks we are planning to revitalize mutual high-level visits in different spheres, which had slowed downed recently due to heavy domestic agenda (referendum in Turkey and elections in Iran) in both countries.�

�Another high-point of our relations during this period was the entering into force of the Preferential Trade Agreement (PTA) between our countries as of January 2015, he said adding, �The negotiations of this agreement had lasted more than a decade and it was eventually signed in January 2014.

�We are already seeing the mutual benefits of the PTA; bilateral trade on the items subject to this agreement have increased more than 30% last year. This shows that the agreement is working. Talks are ongoing for smoother implementation and further expansion of the PTA as agreed upon by our relevant Ministries.�

�Successful and timely conclusion of these talks are also imperative to reach the 30 billion USD target set by our two Presidents.�

�Our bilateral trade volume has stabilized around 10 billion USD during the last two years but we believe we can multiply that figure in a relatively short time in a mutually beneficial way with serious and open-minded efforts.

�Even with the current figures, Iran remains among Turkey�s top ten trade partners and Turkey is among the top five trade partners of Iran,� Tekin stressed.

�Despite the external challenges, mainly due to sanctions imposed on Iran, we managed to maintain our energy cooperation during President Rouhani�s first term. Indeed our crude oil purchases from Iran have doubled recently.

�Iran is currently Turkey�s top natural gas provider after Russia and top crude oil provider after Iraq.

�We hope to transform this relationship beyond purchases through involvement in joint projects during the second term of President Rouhani. Overcoming the price dispute on natural gas imports created a better ground for taking steps in this direction,� he said talking about trade ties between the two countries.

About the issue of tourism, Tekin said, �Tourism is another sector that we made important strides during the last four years.

�Turkey has become a top travel destination for Iranians with its geographic proximity, cultural affinity, rich history, natural attractions as well as excellent tourism infrastructure.

�Last year, 1,65 million Iranians visited Turkey. Interest from Turkish tourists to Iran is also picking up.

�Turks visiting Iran reached almost a quarter million last year corresponding to a 50% increase compared to the previous year.

�We are also open to introducing the investment element in this relationship in the coming years,� he said concluding, �Being one of the leading countries of the world in this sector, we believe we have a lot to contribute to the strengthening of the Iranian tourism infrastructure.�