Lebanon welcomes Iranian companies to implement industrial projects

TEHRAN,Sept.26(MNA) - Iranian companies are placed the top priority for implementing industrial projects in Lebanon, the Lebanese industry minister said. In a meeting with Iranian Ambassador to Lebanon Ghazanfar Roknabadi in Beirut, Vrej Sabonjian said that Lebanon is ready to expand industrial cooperation with Iran. Roknabadi, for his part, expressed Iran’s readiness to establish industrial estates in Lebanon. Lebanon and Iran are mulling a free trade area, Lebanese Economy Minister Nicolas Nahas said on May 4, welcoming the step as a boost to bilateral trade between the two countries. "We are currently studying the agreement that would include phasing out customs and fees on imports and exports between the two countries [in the free trade zone]," he said. Iran's First Vice President Mohammad-Reza Rahimi has said that Iran-Lebanon annual trade is currently around $150 million, noting that the two countries have decided to increase the level of their bilateral transactions by 14 times as much the current level.