TEHRAN - Iran has proposed the formation of a joint working committee between its Chamber of Commerce and the UAE Chambers Confederation to capitalize on the re-export potential of Iranian products through the United Arab Emirates.

Speaking at the Iran Expo 2025 event, Ghadir Ghiafeh, deputy head of the Iran Chamber of Commerce, Industries, Mines and Agriculture (ICCIMA), said the initiative would help streamline trade and improve alignment with global standards. “To fully benefit from the UAE’s logistics and re-export infrastructure, a formal committee should be created between our chambers,” he told the Secretary General of the UAE Chambers Federation.

Ghiafeh also announced plans to establish the ICCIMA’s first overseas Trade and Investment Development Agency office in the UAE, with the aim of attracting foreign investment and enhancing joint cooperation. He added that similar offices would be set up in other countries over time.

Highlighting the need to improve Iranian traders’ access to UAE business networks, he called for the official introduction of a UAE Chamber representative in Iran and reiterated Iran’s interest in opening an ICCIMA office in the Emirates. “We have already formed a joint Iran–UAE chamber in Iran, but its counterpart in the UAE is essential for advancing private sector collaboration,” he said.

Ghiafeh also emphasized the potential of B2B meetings between Iranian trade delegations—many of whom travel to the UAE annually—and their Emirati counterparts, urging the UAE Chamber to facilitate such events.

He further called for the implementation of existing trade agreements through coordinated action between the two chambers, and said the proposed working committee could help ensure Iranian goods meet international standards with UAE support. "There is ample room for joint investment, and we should actively tap into it," he added.

Hamid Mohammed bin Salem, Secretary General of the UAE Chambers Federation, welcomed the proposal and confirmed he would convey Iran’s request to establish a chamber office in the Emirates. “We are ready to facilitate B2B events and support the development of bilateral trade relations,” he said.

He noted that private sector players in both countries are highly capable but require structured support through their respective chambers to maximize potential. Bin Salem added that there is significant room for cooperation in sectors such as logistics, customs, transport, and food products.

He concluded by expressing readiness to share the UAE’s private sector experience with Iran and emphasized that re-exporting Iranian goods through the UAE is a viable opportunity—provided Iranian traders adhere to international standards.

According to an official with the Islamic Republic of Iran Customs Administration (IRICA), Iran exported non-oil commodities valued at $7.2 billion to the United Arab Emirates in the past Iranian calendar year, which ended on March 20, 2025.

Abolfazl Akbarpour, the deputy head of IRICA for planning and international affairs, said that the UAE was Iran's third top export destination in the previous year.

Exporting commodities valued at $21.9 billion to Iran, the United Arab Emirates was Iran's top source of non-oil import in the said time span, the official further added.

Iran and the United Arab Emirates signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) for expanding economic cooperation in a variety of areas at the end of the two countries’ third Joint Economic Committee meeting in May 1, 2024.

The MOU was signed by former Iranian Transport and Urban Development Minister Mehrdad Bazrpash and UAE's Economy Minister Abdullah bin Touq Al Marri, who co-chaired the joint meeting.

During the mentioned committee meeting, the two sides stressed the need for further expansion of economic cooperation between Tehran and Abu Dhabi.

Speaking at the end of the meeting, Bazrpash said: "We have held the joint committee between the two countries after 10 years, which is an opportunity to develop the commercial and economic relations between the two countries."

"The UAE, as Iran's second biggest trade partner, has great strategic importance for us", the minister said.

Referring to the location of Iran and the UAE in the International North-South Transit Corridor (INSTC), Bazarpash said: "Access to the markets of the north and south can create an opportunity for the two countries to cooperate."

In the end, the minister emphasized solving the banking and monetary problems between the two countries to facilitate bilateral trade relations.

Abdullah bin Touq Al Marri for his part underlined the importance of the meeting, saying: "Holding today's meeting shows the development and expansion of economic relations between the two countries. After China, the UAE has the largest amount of trade relations with Iran. The trade value of the two countries has reached 27 billion dollars and many Iranian companies are established in the UAE."

"Creating new opportunities for transportation and banking cooperation is one of the achievements of this commission," the official said.

Referring to the performance of the UAE government in the field of investment, the official said: "The approval of the law on the formation of foreign companies and the government's support for companies that operate in the field of new energies has created a good opportunity for business with the UAE."

The 3rd Iran-UAE Joint Economic Committee meeting was held in Abu Dhabi from April 30 until May 1, 2024.

Increasing non-oil exports to the neighboring countries is one of the major plans that the Iranian government has been pursuing in recent years.

Iran shares land or water borders with 15 countries namely UAE, Afghanistan, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Iraq, Kuwait, Kazakhstan, Oman, Pakistan, Qatar, Russia, Turkey, Turkmenistan, and Saudi Arabia.

EF/MA