Iran: Iraq does not owe any amounts to the Iranian private sector

The head of the Iranian-Iraqi Chamber of Commerce, Yahya Al-Ishaq, confirmed on Tuesday that Iraq does not owe any amounts to the Iranian private sector, while stating that Iranian merchants and economic activists received all their money from Iraq.

Yahya Al-Ishaq said, in an interview with ILNA Labor Agency, about the latest developments about Iranian funds in Iraq and economic cooperation between these two countries: “Economic and trade cooperation with Iraq is currently in a good position, as Iran’s exports to this country have reached 10 billion dollars, which we expect.” To reach $12 billion by the end of the year.”

He stated, “A very good basis has been provided for cooperation in all areas from trade to investment,” adding, “Iraq is a strong financial country, and has set a budget for economic measures worth $150 billion annually, as they planned to stabilize this budget and associated measures for a period of 3 years.” Which amounts to 450 billion dollars.

The head of the Iranian-Iraqi Chamber of Commerce added, "Iraq imports 70% of this $450 billion from the Iranian market and other markets around the world. Iran's exports include technical and engineering services and goods, and are mainly linked to infrastructure project goods, including iron, steel, and others."
Al-Ishaq believed that “Iran could easily acquire a 30% share of the aforementioned 70% in the Iraqi import sector, most of which relate to the export of technical and engineering services.”

Regarding the reason for these obstacles in the way of merchants and economic activists in returning money from Iraq despite the extent of economic opportunities and economic cooperation between Iran and Iraq, he explained: “Who said that Iraq does not repay Iran’s money? I must stress that Iraq does not owe any amounts to the Iranian private sector and that merchants... Iranian economic activists took all their money from Iraq, and if there is a dispute, it may be related to some projects about which there are also disputes in Iran, especially between contractors and project owners in Iran regarding amendments and tariffs.”

He continued regarding the size of Iraq's debts to Iran: "I cannot provide any number because the numbers are constantly changing in conjunction with ongoing cooperation. Iran exports electricity and goods around the clock to Iraq, and this economic cooperation does not cause any harm to Iran."

The Iranian official stressed that "economic cooperation of the private sector with Iraq requires the combined efforts of governments, institutions and chambers of commerce," pointing out "the presence of global competitors in this market, which requires increasing our competitive capabilities."

He continued: "For merchants, the economic activist must keep loss and profit in mind, and the merchant who does not take risks is not an economic activist and should not be active in Iraq's complex and smooth markets. Our merchant must be patient, active, and bold."