Belarus in talks to use Iranian seaports for cargo shipments

MINSK. July 24 (Interfax) - Belarus and Iran are discussing the possibility of using the latter's ports on the Persian and Oman gulfs for cargo shipments to countries in the Middle East, Africa and Asia, the chairman of the Belarusian parliament's International Affairs Commission, Sergei Rachkov told reporters.

"We are very actively working in countries [outside of Europe and the CIS] right now. Iran is such a country that can act in promoting our interests in this region," Rachkov was reported as saying by state news agency BelTA after talks with an Iranian parliamentary delegation in Minsk.

"We are very interested in developing the North-South transport corridor. In the course of the negotiations the Iranian side proposed to again look carefully at ports in Iran in order to use this country's logistical potential for promoting Belarusian goods on the markets of the Middle East, Asia and Africa," Rachkov said.