Iran and Russia can use "Russian Swift" as an alternative for banking transactions; Expert

Speaking with ILNA news agency, the international analyst said that in this case, considerable capacity will be created for trade between the two sides, and the Ruble and the Riyal will be converted without intermediaries and easily, and Iranian traders can easily use bank cards attached to the Russian Swift "Mir".

Ahmad Vakhshiteh said that one of the main problems in trade relations between the two countries is the issue of bank payments and money transfers. Well, Iran is facing US sanctions and Russia is also facing sanctions, and this is an issue that could lead to the definition of joint cooperation in certain contexts, and the most important issue is trade based on the national currencies of the two countries.

Referring to the positive trade relations between Iran and Russia, he added "Statistics show that in 2019, Iran ranked 59th in Russian trade, with 51st in exports from Russia to other countries and 61st in import to Russia."

Ahmad Vakhshiteh said that if we look at the trade balance between Iran and Russia in 2019, this figure was 1 billion and 588 million dollars of which 1 billion and 197 million were exports from Russia to Iran and only 391 million were imported from Iran to Russia.

"Of course, we should also pay attention to the fact that Iran and Russia have large amounts of energy and are natural rivals in this area, and on the other hand, it is natural that other countries are given the opportunity to have a position in the balance."

"Find trade between the two countries. In this case, if we do not consider energy exports, Iran has the 29th place in exports from Russia to other countries," he added.

Vakhshiteh confirmed that this shows that the level of economic relations between the two countries is not commensurate with the level of trade relations, which Iran's new ambassador to Russia, also pointed out and emphasized the importance of building communication infrastructure."

The associate Professor pointed that we are following the top-down model in terms of expanding relations with Russia, adding "This means that good relations have always been established between the Presidents of Iran and Russia; in the meetings, the expansion of relations was emphasized and even the problems that existed in various issues were resolved. But who should run it? The answer is the private sector."

Vakhshiteh said "Now we have to look at how much we have strengthened the private sector inside our country and how much we have raised awareness for the development of relations. If we succeed in this part, important achievements will surely be achieved."

END