Ambassador: China keen on enhanced ties with Iran

Chinese Ambassador to Iran Yu Hongyang said here on Tuesday that promoting ties with Iran is of high significance for his country. In a meeting with Governor General Mahmoud Salahi, he added that trade between the two countries were $30 billion last year adding that Iranian and Chinese officials have agreed to project trade to exceed $40 billion this year. The ambassador said that China has made $700 million investment in Iran last year, adding that his country is currently implementing many projects in Iran. Yu Hongyang said that Iran enjoys extensive capacity for investment in addition to its geographical situation in the region and the entire world. He welcomed the proposal to hold cultural weeks in both countries and establish Urumqi-Mashhad flight. Developing ties with Iran is on the Chinese agenda, Hongyang said, calling for expansion of cooperation between Khorassan Razavi and Xinjiang. Salahi, for his part, said that his province is one of the most populated provinces of Iran where some 6,000 industrial and mineral units are operating. He further contended that Iran is one of the safest places for investment. He voiced Iranian readiness for developing ties with China in all fields. Referring to the establishment of an investment center in Mashhad, he called on the ambassador to dispatch a Chinese delegation to survey the projects for investment. Khorassan Razavi province is located in northeastern Iran. Mashhad is its capital. It is one of the three provinces that were created after the division of Khorassan province in 2004.