Iran, Philippines sign agreements for agriculture cooperation
Iran and the Philippines have signed two cooperation agreements in the field of agriculture as the two countries express their willingness to expand bilateral ties in economy and trade.
The two memoranda of understanding were inked on "agricultural cooperation" and "plant inspection and quarantine" following a meeting between Iranian Agriculture Minister Gholamreza Nouri-Ghezeljeh and Philippine’s Agriculture Undersecretary Zamzamin Ampatuan in the Iranian capital of Tehran on Tuesday.
“We have close ties with the Philippines as a country with similar international views and are eager to expand our relations in various fields,” Nouri-Ghezeljeh said.
Pointing to the various capacities of Iran and the Philippines, Nouri-Ghezeljeh underlined, "These capacities can provide the basis for deepening relations between the two nations. Iran's strategic geographical location is such that it can be considered a route and gateway to Europe for the Philippines, and the Philippines also has a similar position for Iran in relation to East Asia."
The Iranian minister also stressed that his country has made great progress in the agricultural sector in recent years, especially in the production of various fruits, and is one of the leading countries in the world in the production of apples, kiwis, dates, pistachios, and saffron.
The Philippine official, for his part, expressed Manila’s interest in expanding trade relations with Tehran, saying, “We are willing to open the Philippine market to Iranian fruits, especially Iranian red and yellow apples, which are produced in world class."
Stressing that the Philippines has always been by Iran's side in times of challenges and has kept its doors open for Iran, Ampatuan said the export of bananas to Iran is a 30-year business.
"We import oil and petrochemicals from Iran, but unfortunately, now the only commodity in our country is bananas that we can continue to trade,” he added.
Ampatuan said most of the Philippine bananas exported to Iran are grown in a predominantly Muslim region and are produced by Muslims in the southeast Asian country.
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