Top officials from Switzerland’s Federal Department of Economic Affairs, Education and Research and State Secretariat for Economic Affairs are set to visit Tehran next week.
“ Swiss delegates are set to hold talks with the Iranian Economy Minister Ali Tayyebnia, Central Bank of Iran officials and chief executives of private banks, mainly to help solve the ongoing banking hurdles between the two countries,” Sharif Nezam-Mafi, the head of Iran-Switzerland Chamber of Commerce, was quoted as saying by TCCIM.ir on Saturday.
“Discussions of banking issues would be the main focus of Swiss officials during their travel to Tehran, as lack of normal banking relations has been disrupting plans for expansion of trade between the two countries,” he said.
“The Swiss delegation’s visit could be of high importance,” he said, pointing to Donald Trump’s victory in US presidential election and the turbulence it has caused in the world markets.
The Swiss team is also set to hold meetings with private sector leaders during their three-day trip to Tehran.
Back in May, high-ranking representatives of the State Secretariat for International Financial Matters and of the Central Bank of Iran met for the first time in Bern on Monday for financial dialogue.
The financial dialogue is part of the roadmap to strengthen bilateral relations agreed during the visit of the President of Swiss Confederation Johann N. Schneider-Ammann to Tehran in February.
Banking relations between the two countries have not yet normalized, though some smaller banks in the country have started working with Iran.
The Swiss government estimates that exports to Iran, more than $620 million last year, could double or even triple within a decade. That would come to 1% of Swiss exports.
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