The 14th round of Iran-Serbia Economic Commission began in Tehran on Tuesday. Iran’s Minister of Industries, Mining and Trade Mohammad Reza Nematzadeh and Serbia’s Deputy Prime Minister Rasim Ljajic, who also serves as the minister of foreign and domestic trade and telecommunications, co-chair the two-day meeting. Serbian Minister of Energy and Mining Aleksandar Antic, Minister of Economy Zeljko Sertic, Minister of Agriculture and Environmental Protection Snezana Bogosavljevic Boskovic and Minister of Youth and Sports Vanja Udovicic and 45 representatives from the country’s private sector are accompanying Ljajic on his Iran visit, IRNA reported. Several memoranda of understanding on economic cooperation, trade, industries, investment, mining and energy, agriculture, transportation, science and technology, finance, tourism and sports as well as public and private cooperation were signed in the joint commission’s meetings. “This is my third visit to Iran in six months, which is the sign of Belgrade’s determination to expand ties with Tehran,” said Ljajic, noting that the visits should aim at clearing the hurdles in the way of bilateral trade. Ljajic saw the cumbersome procedure to obtain Iranian visa as one of those hurdles and called for facilitating visa issuance between the two countries. The Iranian minister said his country is seeking to initiate long-term, strategic cooperation with other countries through joint investments. Nematzadeh also floated the idea of free trade in some goods with Serbia and stressed the importance of launching a direct flight between Tehran and Belgrade.
