TEHRAN – Iran’s Consul General in Islamabad Mohammad Rafiei said the volumeof trade between Iran and Pakistan currently stands at $1.5 billion peryear, noting that Tehran plans to raise the turnover to $5 billion.link>link>link>link>

“The two nations have traditional, religious and trade relations spreadover decades,” Rafiei said, speaking at a ceremony held in the Pakistanicapital on Sunday to mark the 39 anniversary of Islamic Revolution.

He added, “Pakistan and Iran share more than 1,000km-long border and bothcountries have strategic importance in the region in geopolitical andeconomic terms.”

Referring to the volume of trade between the two countries, the Iraniandiplomat said Iran-Pakistan’s Joint Chamber of Commerce has played a keyrole in boosting bilateral business ties between the neighboring countries.

In 2016, high-ranking officials from Iran and Pakistan signed sixmemorandums of understanding (MoUs) to strengthen bilateral cooperation invarious areas, including health, commerce, security and foreign services.

The documents were signed in a ceremony in Islamabad on March 26, attendedby Iranian President Hassan Rouhani and Pakistani Prime Minister NawazSharif.