Expert of West Asian politics, Farzan Shahidi has took a glimpse of Iran’s Minister of Foreign Affairs latest regional trip. “Bilateral trade will be among the top agendas.”
Farzan Shahidi told The Radio Goftegoo that we have great relations with Qatar and Iraq; Especially in the fields of diplomacy and trade. Therefore, a talk on related issues is very much expected.
He said that the details of this official trip have not been made public but recent incidents which are of an importance to both the parties have brought them close to each other.
Shahidi further said: “Recently we had the Baghdad Negotiations; on the other hand Iraqi PM is playing a role in mediation between Iran and Saudis. Thus, it’s expected that Zarif will discuss these topics during his official trip to Baghdad.”
He told The Radio Goftegoo that an Iraqi mediated Iran- Saudi talks as well as the US forces presence in Iraq, can be among the issues which Zarif may raise during his visit.
He said that Iran has a deep and at the same time a sensitive sort of relation with Iraq which US tries to jeopardize it through its meddling. “This may be a topic of discussion too.”
He further said that in 2017, tensions rose between Riyadh and Doha and they cut off all their relations until 2021. It was a period when Qatar turned over towards Iran and the relationship between these two still remains strong .
Shahidi also pointed out the concerns regarding the negative pressure Saudis may put on Iran and Qatar relations and said that Mr. Zarif’s trip to Doha may insure that the bond between the two countries remains intact.
Shahidi said that Iran’s economic sector believes that despite of these close relations, the bilateral trade between Tehran and Doha is negligible and just of 400 Million USDs of value, while with all the tensions out there, Imports and Exports from and to UAE has remained around 13 Billion Dollars .
