Finland Calls for Broadening of Trade Ties with Iran

"We are trying to pave the way for the expansion of bilateral ties between the two countries, specially in the fields of trade and economy," Kämäräinen said in a meeting with a group of chief executives of Iranian private companies in Iran's West Azarbaijan province on Saturday. Finland's ambassador pointed to his country's products such as elevators, diesel engines and Nokia mobile phones, and said, "Finland's products are exported to 120 countries and Iran can maintain trade ties with Finland in these sectors." In a relevant development in early June, Tehran and Helsinki held a joint business meeting attended by over 300 businessmen from the two countries. Heads of Iranian and Finnish chambers of commerce, Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif and his Finnish counterpart Timo Soini delivered speeches in the meeting. Finland's economic activists became familiar with the investment opportunities in Iran at the meeting. Also in late May, Zarif and Finnish Parliament Speaker Maria Lohela in a meeting in Helsinki explored avenues to accelerate expansion of bilateral relations between the two countries. During the meeting, Zarif underlined that relations between Tehran and Helsinki are moving on the right track at the three levels of governments, parliaments and businesspersons, and expressed the hope that bilateral parliamentary ties would broaden. Lohela, for her part, underlined the Finnish parliament's preparedness to expand relations with Iran's legislature, and expressed the hope that the Iran-Finland Friendship Group would soon be formed at the new Iranian parliament Source:Farsnews