PNN – The 28th meeting of foreign ministers of the member countries of the Economic Cooperation Organization known as “ECO” in Mashhad is a good opportunity for the Islamic Republic of Iran to emphasize its important transit and commercial role in international corridors, especially the importance of its northern and eastern provinces.
According to the report of Pakistan News Network, this week Mashhad will host the 28th meeting of foreign ministers of ECO Economic Cooperation Organization. This summit, which is held with the presence of ministers, ambassadors, diplomats and economic experts from member countries and international organizations, is considered a valuable opportunity to strengthen regional cooperation. Considering Iran’s strategic position in the region, the important role of the North-South corridor as one of the main axes of transit and international trade will be given special attention in this summit.
This corridor, which connects the northern and eastern provinces of Iran to the southern open waters and other trans-regional countries, is of vital importance. Strong transit infrastructure, including railway lines, transportation routes, seaports and active customs, has made Iran a main communication bridge in the north-south and east-west routes. Holding this summit in Mashhad is a great opportunity for the Islamic Republic of Iran to present its proposals and economic considerations focusing on the development and strengthening of transit and border cooperation with neighboring countries.
Gholam Abbas Arbab Khales, the former ambassador of the Islamic Republic of Iran in Turkmenistan, explained the importance of this meeting, especially its holding in Mashhad, in a note:
This week, Iran will host about 10 foreign ministers of ECO Economic Cooperation Organization member countries, along with ambassadors and diplomats, and dozens of senior officials, managers and economic experts of this organization and member countries and some international and regional organizations. This meeting is the 28th meeting of ECO Foreign Ministers, and it will be held while the Islamic Republic of Iran holds the rotating presidency of this regional organization in 2024. On the initiative of the honorable foreign minister of our country, this important meeting is going to be held in the holy city of Mashhad.
– Considering the title and inherent function of the ECO organization, which is a regional organization and definitely seeks to adopt and implement cooperation and development policies in the region, especially the economic-cultural sectors and its related branches, including transit-trade-energy-science and technology- weather etc.
– The commercial-production and industrial capacities of the northern and eastern provinces of the country, as the provinces that have had extensive commercial and commercial interactions and experiences with the aforementioned countries since the beginning of the emergence and independence of the countries of Central Asia and the Caucasus, as well as border connections with Afghanistan and Pakistan.
The presentation of the above 4 suggestions can be presented by our country in the framework of a specific project under the title of activating “provincial diplomacy” among ECO countries, a project that is in the framework of the work program of the Honorable Minister of Foreign Affairs of our country in the Islamic Parliament, under the title of border diplomacy and strengthening cooperation.