Kuwait denies visas for new Iranian tradesmen
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Kuwait denies providing visas for new Iranian tradesmen. Chairman of the Iran-Kuwait Chamber of Commerce Hani Faisal says Kuwait does not issue visas for new Iranian businessmen who are eager to trade with this Arab state.
Speaking to ILNA, Faisal said comparing to the other Persian Gulf States, Kuwait has the most amount of imports and the volume of its imports is up to $40b while Iran’s share of it is very insignificant and the volume of Iran’s exports to Kuwait is around $400m annually.
On the trade between Iran and Kuwait, he said Iran’s trade with Kuwait is very slight and only those who have had trade with Kuwait from the past can do trade in Kuwait and it is impossible for the arrival of new Iranian tradesmen into the Kuwait market.
Faisal reiterated that Kuwait does not issue visas for the new tradesmen and the outbreak of COVID-19 also has worsened the condition and has had a negative impact on the bilateral trade.
He reiterated that Iran’s trade with Kuwait was low even in the pre-COVID-19 era and it has worsened after the outbreak. He further said that the bilateral trade of Iran and Kuwait was usually between $600m to $700m per year as the figure has declined to around $500m this year. Faisal noted that the bilateral trade between both states despite the proximity of southern Iranian ports to Kuwait should be more than the current amount and it needs active economic diplomacy, adding despite some talks with Kuwaiti officials, no progress has been seen yet.
Faisal also pointed to the important role of Iraq in the transit of goods between Iran and Kuwait, noting that Iraqis have not let it happen yet.
He also pointed to Iran’s exports to Kuwait, saying that Iran’s exports to Kuwait include construction materials, mineral materials, fertilizer, and a container shipping line that has been launched which let refrigerated goods be shipped to Kuwait, and in return, Iran has no imports from Kuwait.
On the presence of Israeli goods in the Kuwait market, Faisal said if all Arab states normalize ties with Israel, Kuwait will be the last one, and therefore, there are no Israeli goods in Kuwait.
Faisal went on to say that Kuwait market and shops miss Iranian goods as Iran’s share of Kuwait’s imports is very insignificant, reiterating that economic activists’ demands are to launch stronger economic diplomacy with Kuwait in order to boost trade with this country and the ground for the presence of new Iranian tradesmen in Kuwait market could be provided.
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