TEHRAN, Aug. 6 (Xinhua) -- Iran's central banker said the country is ready to boost bilateral monetary and trade ties with Sri Lanka within the framework of the Asian Clearing Union (ACU), the semi-official Tasnim News Agency reported Sunday.
Governor of the Central Bank of Iran Mohammadreza Farzin made the remarks in a meeting with visiting Sri Lankan Foreign Minister Ali Sabry in the capital Tehran.
The ACU can provide a very favorable context for the development of the two countries' trade and monetary ties and can also be used for the payment of bilateral debts, Farzin noted.
He proposed to form an ad hoc working group by the two countries' central banks to facilitate the resolution of mutual banking issues, help promote bilateral monetary and banking cooperation and boost economic transactions.
Despite the U.S. unilateral sanctions, Iran has managed to establish stable trade relations with its partners without letting the embargoes cause any problems for the other sides, he said.
For his part, the Sri Lankan foreign minister expressed his country's readiness to improve the level of trade with Iran.
He agreed that establishing a joint interbank committee for the follow-ups on bilateral issues and facilitation of trade affairs will definitely help expand cooperation between the two countries.
Sabry promised that the Central Bank of Sri Lanka will pursue the two countries' cooperation within the ACU's framework.
During his visit to Tehran, Sabry met his Iranian counterpart Hossein Amir-Abdollahian and President Ebrahim Raisi on Saturday and Sunday respectively. ■
