Iran’s first vice-president put forward a proposal to lift visa requirements for the Iranian and Iraqi travelers, and also called for trade exchanges between the two countries using their own currencies, namely rial and dinar.
Addressing a meeting of high-ranking delegations from Iran and Iraq, attended by the visiting Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi and held in Tehran on Tuesday, Iranian First Vice-President Eshaq Jahangiri called for the expansion of banking cooperation between the two neighbors by removing the trade obstacles.
To that end, he proposed, Iran and Iraq can begin to trade using their national currencies.
Jahangiri then noted that the political, economic and security cooperation between Iran and Iraq has reached such a high level that they need to formulate a “comprehensive document on trade and economic cooperation.”
The vice president also pointed to the huge number of Iranian pilgrims traveling to Iraq every year, suggesting that Tehran and Baghdad should sign an agreement to lift the visa restrictions.
For his part, the visiting Iraqi prime minister voiced Baghdad’s readiness to boost relations with Tehran in all fields.
Iraq and Iran are in the same front in the fight against terrorism, Abadi added, saying the Takfiri terrorist groups in the Arab country are on the brink of destruction.
Heading a delegation, Abadi arrived in Tehran on Tuesday and held meetings with Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei and with Iranian President Hassan Rouhani.