Russian-backed union signs free trade pact with Iran

A Russian-backed union signs a free trade pact with Iran. According to statements made by Russia’s Ministry of Economy and the Eurasian Economic Union (EEU) on Monday, members of the Eurasian Economic Union (EEU), which Russia leads, have signed a fully-fledged free trade deal with Iran.

The agreement will replace a comparable temporary arrangement in place since 2019 and then become permanent. Through the prior agreement, mutual commerce with Iran was made more straightforward, and it was expanded from $2.4 billion in 2019 to $6.2 billion in 2022 over six years.

The countries of Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Russia are all members of the Eurasian Economic Partnership.

Russia had to look for new markets outside of Europe as a result of sanctions put in place by the West in response to Moscow’s involvement in the Ukraine crisis. As a result, both the region and Iran have taken on greater relevance for the Kremlin.

At the same time that the new agreement would establish a favorable system for nearly all commerce between Russia and Iran, it would also reduce customs tariffs on over 90 percent of the items traded between the two countries.

According to Maxim Reshetnikov, the minister of the economy of Russia, the agreement will allow businesses in that country to save about 27 billion roubles ($294 million) annually.