MNA � Ali Rabiei, Minister of Cooperatives, Labour and social welfare, received Singaporean Senior Minister of State, Ministry of Defence and Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Mohamad Maliki Osman on Thursday in Tehran.


�The private sectors of the two countries can cooperate on different areas,� said Ali Rabiei while receiving Mohamad Maliki Osman on Thursday in Tehran. The Iranian minister underlined the development of bilateral interaction and economic activities between Iran and Singapore.

Rabiei boasted the amount and scope of activities of Iran�s Welfare Provision Organization and asserted that the organization is worth a ministry in Iran. He highlighted that there are many companies under the control of the organization and many European companies are trying to have agreements with those companies.

�About banking cooperation, we need immediate measures because the formation of banking ties is of prime importance for us,� said the Iranian minister after recounting that banking interaction between the two countries has already started between the two countries.

�Iran is not just a 70 million market, because Iran opens access to the 300 million market of the region and services are easily delivered to the people of the region through Iran,� reminded the Iranian official. He reassured his Singaporean guest that Iran is a regional hub.

Marine cooperation was another area that Mr. Rabiei invited the Singaporeans to invest in Iran. He said that there are two giant shipping companies under Iran�s Welfare Provision Organization and the companies can reach agreements with Singaporean companies. Rabiei noted that already a contract has been signed with a South Korean company to jointly build 10 ships and a similar contract can be signed with Singaporean shipbuilders.

Cooperation on areas of harbor building and services and constructing oil refineries and petrochemical plants were the other potential areas of bilateral interaction, highlighted by the Iranian minister.

Mohamad Maliki Osman, for his part, during the meeting, said that Iran�s oil export to Singapore has risen by 60 percent after the JCPOA which marks a good change.

Touching upon cooperation between the private sectors of the two countries, he reassured that a trade delegation will visit Iran in the next couple of month.

Maliki Osman also boasted that Singapore is a regional marine hub and invited Iranin marine officials to visit Singapore and expand maritime cooperation.