Page 46 - IRANRptFeb22

9.1.3 Aviation sector news
Iran ‘in discussion with China, Russia over new airports’
Iran offers bilateral talks with countries whose national died after Flight PS752 was shot down
Iran has entered into discussions with both China and Russia over new airports, Iranian Labour News Agency (ILNA) reported on February 1. Tehran has lately launched a 25-year cooperation deal with China and moved to finalise a 20-year cooperation deal with Russia. The deals open the way to the ramping up of Chinese and Russian investment in Iran, respectively. However, the 54 airports Iran already has are generally lossmaking. Managing director of Iran’s Airports Company, Siavash Amirmokri, was quoted as saying that after preliminary studies and negotiations, Tehran would begin talks over technical matters including navigation systems. On a 20- to 25-year timescale, there were no immediate plans for new airports, he added.
ISNA reported in late 2016 that only half a dozen of Iran’s airports were profitable, up from three in 2013. Since the US reintroduced the imposition of heavy sanctions on the country in 2018, the picture might have worsened considerably.
The former head of Iran’s Civil Aviation Organization, Touraj Dehghani Zanganeh, said in March last year that over 90% of flights were concentrated in only 10 airports. Half of traffic was at Mehrabad airport, Tehran, and Mashhad International airport, he noted.
Many internal flights are operated in Iran, given the country’s size and population of 84mn.
Maintaining aircraft in a good and safe condition is challenging because US sanctions block the import of required components, while they also stand in the way of the acquisition of new planes. Deals with Boeing and Airbus for the purchase of dozens of planes were wrecked by sanctions.
Iran has offered to meet bilaterally with countries whose nationals died in the accidental shooting down of a Ukrainian passenger by Iranian armed forces just outside Tehran two years ago.
The statement outlining the offer issued on January 7 by the Iranian Foreign Ministry came after a joint announcement from Ukraine, Britain, Canada and Sweden stating that they were abandoning a two-year effort to negotiate with Tehran over reparations for the victims of the tragedy and would pursue the matter through international legal channels.
Iran concedes that a unit of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) brought down Ukraine International Airlines Flight PS752, killing all 176 people aboard, after a technical and human error. Tensions were heightened between Tehran and the US at the time and the unit was on alert for a possible US military attack.
"Despite certain countries' illegal actions and attempts to exploit this tragic event..., Iran remains ready to negotiate bilaterally with each of the relevant states," Iran's Foreign Ministry said via state media, without explaining what illegal actions it believed other nations had committed.
However, it added that any talks should respect "sovereignty, domestic laws, and international obligations."
More than 130 of the passengers had ties to Canada. Citizens or residents of Afghanistan, Britain, Iran, Ukraine and Sweden also lost their lives when the Kyiv-bound aircraft was downed.
A Canadian court last week awarded $84mn and interest to the families of six of the victims.
The Iranian government said separately on January 7 that it has begun paying compensation to the families of those killed.
"The Transport Ministry has made transfers to a certain number of [victims']
46 IRAN Country Report February 2022 www.intellinews.com