Government Official: No Exports or Imports Between Iran and Saudi Arabia

The head of Iran's Trade Development Organization announced that trade with Saudi Arabia has "reached zero" and that no exports or imports are taking place between the two countries. Mojtaba Khosrotaj stated in an interview with ISNA on Friday, July 30, that Iran has "no resolution or law indicating a cessation of cooperation with regional countries and has not issued any warnings to the private sector in this regard." He added, "If a country, based on its own conditions, does not want to import goods from Iran, that is another matter." Khosrotaj's remarks come in the context of a government decision on Thursday, January 7, 2016, which prohibited the entry of goods produced in Saudi Arabia or originating from that country from "all" entry points to Iran, including free and special economic zones. Three days prior to this resolution, Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir had announced that the severing of relations with Iran included the end of all trade relations and the cancellation of flights between the two countries, but did not affect Iranian travel to the Hajj pilgrimage. Following the execution of Sheikh Nimr, a prominent Shia cleric and critic of the Saudi government, protests were held outside the Saudi embassy and consulate in Tehran and Mashhad, culminating in attackers entering the embassy and consulate and setting parts of the buildings on fire. In response to this event, Saudi Arabia cut diplomatic ties with Iran on Sunday, January 3, 2016. In recent years, Iran's exports to Saudi Arabia have exceeded imports from that country. According to the statistics from the Islamic Republic's customs, in 2014, Iran's exports to Saudi Arabia amounted to $152 million and imports from that country were $46 million. In the past two years, Iran's exports to Saudi Arabia have been around $151 million, while imports from that country have been about $76 million. Sulfur, stone, edible fruits, iron and steel, carpets, dairy products, and sweets have been among Iran's exports to Saudi Arabia in previous years. The website Eghtesadnews previously reported that trade relations between the two countries had been declining since 2004, even before the complete severance of relations. Relations between Iran and several Arab countries in the Persian Gulf deteriorated during Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's presidency, peaking after conflicts in Syria, Yemen, and Bahrain. Meanwhile, the Kuwaiti government has been making efforts over the past year to improve relations between Iran and the Gulf Arab states. On Thursday, July 29, it requested Tehran to reduce the number of its diplomats in the country from 19 to 4. In protest, Iran's Foreign Ministry summoned the chargé d'affaires of Kuwait in Tehran.