According to the Public Relations and International Affairs Department of the Chabahar Free Zone Organization, Dr. Mohammad Saeid Arbabi, Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer of the Chabahar Free Zone Organization, met with Imran Ahmed Siddiqui, the newly appointed Ambassador of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan to the Islamic Republic of Iran, to discuss ways to expand economic, commercial, transit and investment cooperation between the two countries, with a focus on the strategic capacities of Chabahar and Gwadar, as well as the Rimdan–Gabd border region.

During the meeting, which was held in Tehran, the two sides highlighted the longstanding historical, cultural and economic ties between the Islamic Republic of Iran and the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. They stressed the importance of making full use of free zones, ports and border crossings to strengthen bilateral relations, expand trade and enhance regional cooperation.

Dr. Arbabi noted that the Chabahar Free Zone, as the Islamic Republic of Iran’s only oceanic free zone, occupies a strategic position along international transportation, trade and transit corridors.

He said that expanding cooperation between the Chabahar and Gwadar free zones could help increase economic exchanges, attract joint investment, develop logistics chains and strengthen the region’s role in international trade.

“Chabahar and Gwadar, as two strategic, complementary and sister ports and free zones, possess significant capacities in transportation, transit and trade. By creating greater synergy between their capabilities, they can strengthen economic ties between Iran and Pakistan and improve economic connectivity among countries across the region,” he said.

The Chairman and CEO of the Chabahar Free Zone Organization also stressed the need to accelerate the development of infrastructure required to facilitate cross-border trade.

He said the establishment of a new, independent joint border gate between the Islamic Republic of Iran and the Islamic Republic of Pakistan within the Rimdan Separate Zone of the Chabahar Free Zone was an important and necessary measure to facilitate the movement of trucks carrying imported, exported and transit goods between Rimdan and Gabd.

Dr. Arbabi added that the operation of the new border gate could reduce crossing times, increase freight-handling capacity and contribute significantly to the expansion of bilateral trade and the achievement of the two countries’ target of increasing trade to USD 10 billion.

He said the project would also enhance the strategic position of the Rimdan–Gabd corridor and help transform the area into one of the main hubs of cross-border trade between Iran and Pakistan.

Dr. Arbabi further identified the proposed Rimdan–Gabd Joint Free Zone as another major area of future cooperation between the two countries.

“The implementation of this project, which has been agreed upon by Iran and Pakistan, could facilitate cross-border trade, attract investment, stimulate production, create employment opportunities and promote balanced development in the border regions of both countries,” he stated.

For his part, Imran Ahmed Siddiqui, Ambassador of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan to the Islamic Republic of Iran, welcomed the expansion of economic and commercial cooperation between the two countries.

He expressed Pakistan’s readiness to broaden bilateral engagement by using the capacities of the Chabahar and Gwadar ports and free zones, as well as those of the Rimdan–Gabd border region.

The ambassador described the expansion of border cooperation and stronger economic links between neighbouring regions of the two countries as an effective means of improving the welfare of border communities, strengthening friendly relations and further consolidating the historical ties between the Islamic Republic of Iran and the Islamic Republic of Pakistan.

During the meeting, the two sides also underlined the important role of free zones, ports and border crossings in advancing the Islamic Republic of Iran’s economic diplomacy and neighbourhood policy.

They described the use of the capacities of the Chabahar and Gwadar ports and free zones, together with the proposed Rimdan–Gabd Joint Free Zone, as a strategic instrument for expanding trade and transit and strengthening economic connectivity across the region and among member states of the Economic Cooperation Organization.

The meeting was held as part of efforts to expand economic relations between the Islamic Republic of Iran and the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, strengthen regional cooperation and utilise shared capacities to promote sustainable development, bilateral economic integration between Iran and Pakistan and broader multilateral cooperation among countries of the region.

Imran Ahmed Siddiqui, Pakistan’s newly appointed ambassador to Iran, formally began his diplomatic mission in Tehran after presenting his credentials to President of the Islamic Republic of Iran Dr. Masoud Pezeshkian at an official ceremony last week.