In light of the dim prospects for the world economy, it is essential to strengthen economic and commercial multilateralism through frameworks such as the D-8 Organization for Economic Cooperation, the top Iranian diplomat said.
D-8 (the Developing-8) is an organization geared toward expanding cooperation among eight countries, namely Iran, Indonesia, Malaysia, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Egypt, Nigeria and Turkey.
Speaking at its 18th session of the D-8 Council of Ministers in the Turkish city of Antalya on Saturday, Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif highlighted the International Monetary Fund's predictions of a low growth rate and even recession for the global economy, attributing it to unilateralism.
"There should be no doubt that unilateralism and growing trade barriers and sanctions are the main reasons for the situation that has given rise to such a negative outlook," the Foreign Ministry's website quoted Zarif as saying.
Unilateral trade action, retaliatory measures and economic sanctions, according to Zarif, not only disrupt the global economy, but also hamper the development of multinational cooperation "at a time when it is urgently needed."
"Under the circumstances, it is now more than ever necessary for us to enhance and strengthen economic and commercial multilateralism," he said, urging D-8 member states to join nations who stand up to unilateralism and refuse to go along with irresponsible and illegal acts, including "criminal sanctions" against Iran.
Zarif was referring to unilateral sanctions imposed by the United States on Tehran after withdrawing from the 2015 nuclear deal with the world powers in May.
The US has been spearheading unilateralism through other moves in defiance of the global community, including its withdrawal from the Paris climate accord and a slew of international trade arrangements.
Engine of Development
Zarif said D-8 countries need to maintain their strength through the development of an internal market that would work as both "a manufacturing hub and a consumer base".
"We … need to build on our own synergies and complementarities, thus enabling us to withstand external economic risks and barriers as well as other known and unknown challenges that we may face in the future," he said.
Describing trade as an engine of economic development, the minister called for measures to facilitate financial and banking cooperation and work out payment mechanisms to promote intra-regional trade among D-8 member states.
Along this line, he proposed the establishment of a clearing house and expressed Iran's readiness to share its experiences of hosting the Asian Clearing Union with D-8 countries.
A clearing house is a financial institution formed to facilitate the exchange of payments, securities or derivatives transactions.
Iran hosts the headquarters of Asian Clearing Union since its inception in 1974.
The minister underscored the private sector, energy and human capital as key factors essential to economic growth.
He reiterated Iran's commitment to expand cooperation in the energy sector and gave assurance that the D-8 International University established in Hamedan will contribute toward human resource development.
"The Islamic Republic of Iran has been and remains committed to the objectives of the D-8 and will continue to support this organization toward the achievement of its goals," he concluded.
