Iran confirms readiness to fully resume work on free trade zone with EAEU - EEC minister

ST. PETERSBURG. June 3 (Interfax) - Iran has said it intends to fully resume work on implementing its free trade agreement with the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) after a pause necessitated by the Middle East conflict, Eurasian Economic Commission (EEC) Trade Minister Andrei Slepnev said in an interview with Interfax.

"Work was complicated in March. In the first week of the conflict we even had serious problems with communications, let alone holding scheduled meetings and so on. But now the situation has changed and I can say that the most important message that we heard at the meeting in Astana from [Iranian Industry, Mines and Trade] Minister [Mohammad] Atabak was a call to resume full-fledged planned work in all areas," Slepnev said.

"We are now fully resuming all working contacts in order to completely fill the agenda of the second meeting of the joint committee, which, we expect, will be held in Tehran in the fall," he said.

The free trade agreement between EAEU countries and Iran went into effect in May 2025.

"We see that 2025 gave us another increase in trade, by 15.5%. Our exports to Iran grew by more than 20%. I will note this is growth from an already fairly high base. We have been growing at high rates for several years already and, of course, with every subsequent year it will be more difficult to maintain such rates," Slepnev said, commenting on the results of the agreement's first year.