MNA –Iranian Parliamentary official says that deteriorating bilateral relations with Turkmenistan is upsetting for Iran, adding persisting gas row has caused more problems.







According to the website of Iranian Parliament ‘Khaneh Mellat’, Heshmatollah Falahatpisheh made the remarks in a meeting with the representatives of private sector, representatives of chambers of commerce and some other economic officials at the National Security and Foreign Policy Commission of the Iranian Parliament on Sunday.

“The annual drop in relations between Iran and Turkmenistan and the increasing disagreements with the neigbouring country are a matter of concern for Iran,” Falahatpisheh said.

He said that both Iran and Turkmenistan are to blame for the problems, while enemies of the bilateral relations also play a part in the matter.

The issue of Iranian nationals detained in Turkmenistan, the issue of the need for joint investment and the issue of changing the border crossings have led to differences, the Iranian senior MP said, adding the failure to solve the gas row between the two countries has caused some other problems.

He pointed out “sometimes a single issue brings the whole foreign policy of a country to a standstill.”

He noted that water row with Afghanistan and the gas transfer dispute with Turkmenistan have affected Iran’s ties with its northern and eastern neighbors.

Falahatpisheh said that the value of Iran’s exports to Afghanistan stands at $2bn while putting the imports from Afghanistan at only $15mn, creating a problem for the Afghan side when it comes to decision making.

He also criticized the Afghan side of the border for lack of security that has caused problems for Iranian merchants.

Meanwhile, the chairman of the National Security and Foreign Policy Commission of the Iranian Parliament criticized lack of appropriate attention to bilateral relations with neighbors on the part of the Iranian government officials.