Chairman of export promotion department of Iran Chamber of Commerce Asadollah Asgaroladi said on Tuesday that the level of trade exchange between Iran and the US exceeded $550mln in the first quarter of the current Iranian year (March 21-July 20).
He further added that Iran's imports from the US in the said period stood at $350mln and the country's exports to US stood at $200mln.
The official went on to say that if talks between Iran and the six major world powers continue on the right direction, the figure will reach $600 – 700mln and even one billion dollars a year.
Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif arrived in Vienna at the head of a five-member team of senior negotiators on Monday.
Representatives of Iran and the Group 5+1 (the US, Russia, China, Britain and France plus Germany) started comprehensive talks in Vienna on Tuesday over a lasting solution to the nuclear standoff between the two sides after hectic diplomatic efforts in Geneva in November resulted in an interim agreement.
Zarif is accompanied by Araqchi, Deputy Foreign Minister for European and American Affairs Majid Takht Ravanchi, Foreign Ministry Director-General for Political and International Affairs Hamid Baeidinejad, Foreign Minister's Legal Adviser Davoud Mohammadnia and Director-General for Safeguards at the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI) Mohammad Amiri.
The Sextet is headed by EU Foreign Policy Chief Catherine Ashton and represented by US Undersecretary of State Wendy Sherman, British Foreign Office Political Director Simon Gass, French Foreign Ministry Political Director Jacques Audibert, German Foreign Ministry Advisor Hans-Dieter Lucas, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov and China’s representative Li Baodong.
The first round of the multifaceted talks with the representatives of the six world powers on Tuesday morning only took 40 minutes, and the two sides said talks would continue through bilateral meetings between the Iranian foreign minister, the EU foreign policy chief, and the G5+1 negotiators.
