Post-sanction Iran trade boosts Turkey

Turkey says its trade with Iran has increased 30 percent since the lifting of US-led sanctions on the Islamic Republic in January.

Customs Minister Bulent Tufenkci also said in Ankara on Wednesday that Iranian and Turkish companies were working on joint investments in other countries.

In June, Tufenkci said Turkey aimed to triple trade with Iran to $30 billion as quickly as possible after the lifting of sanctions.

Traditionally archrivals, the two neighbors have maintained their strong trade relations even as they have parted ways on the political front, especially over the Syria conflict.

Turkey and Iran had established their best relationship just before the West intensified sanctions on the Islamic Republic in 2012 when trade rose to $21.9 billion before falling below $10 billion in 2015.

According to Tufenkci, the removal of the sanctions was making banking and financial transactions more facile and boosting Turkey’s business with Iran.

Iran was one of the key clients of Turkey’s Halkbank for processing the major producer’s oil transactions but their business wilted under the sanctions.