Iran’s Minister of Roads and Urban Development Abbas Akhoundi met Oman’s Foreign Minister Yusuf bin Alawi bin Abdullah as well as Minister of Commerce and Industry Ali bin Masoud bin Ali al-Sunaidy in Tehran on Saturday to discuss cooperation in the transport sector. Talks also revolved around the development of Iranian southern ports and the construction of three ports in Oman. Port developments are part of broader mutual cooperation on a transit corridor passing through Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, Iran and Oman, which was also discussed, Iranian Transport Ministry’s news website reported. The establishment of a joint aircraft leasing firm and an airline, in addition to increasing flight routes, was also discussed during the meeting. Iran recently launched a direct shipping route to Oman in what is expected to help diversify access to international export markets for the Islamic Republic. The new route is expected to turn Oman into a hub for the reexport of Iranian goods in the region, possibly overtaking trade between Iran and the UAE. There are also speculations that Iran and Oman plan to use the route to promote trade across the region. Iran exported $172 million worth of goods to Oman during the first six months of the current Iranian year (to end March 19), while imports reached $43 million.
