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November 17, 2017 www.intellinews.com I Page 4
the entity’s government plans to do now.
“We are struggling to find solutions for Prijedor because Prijedor and Zencia are married to- gether, not by ArcelorMittal but by history,” says Nair. “Now, we need to develop new mines there so ArcelorMittal is looking forward to a very good engagement with the government of Republika Srpksa to find a solution to develop it and go further.” He stresses the benefit of having an iron ore mine virtually on the steel plant’s doorstep: “if Prijedor mine produces iron and it is used in Zenica, it gets value but if you transfer it more
Could Uzbekistan be Iran’s bastion of influence in Central Asia?
in September 2016, did little to improve things. While Uzbekistan shut itself off from the outside world because of Karimov’s paranoia, Iran was closed off from international trade and investment due to the crippling Western nuclear sanctions. But gone is Karimov and gone are the sanctions, and both Iran and Uzbekistan have been opening up, including to each other.
Uzbekistan’s fortunes may have been revived by the rise to power of Karimov's successor, the apparently reform-minded President Shavkat Mirziyoyev. Karimov took a highly cautious approach to his neighbours, but Mirziyoyev
is looking to bolster regional cooperation. Landlocked Uzbekistan, Central Asia's most populous nation, with towards 33mn inhabitants, is under its new broom aiming to foster trade with the next-door neighbours that are part of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) and, just a little further afield, with Iran.
than 500km, it loses value. We need to continue this marriage.”
Despite the challenges, however, ArcelorMittal is committed to staying in Bosnia and in the region, with Nair being very passionate about his work there. Having already spent 14 years and millions of euros, ArcelorMittal wants to see its business grow along with the town of Zenica.
“We are stay here, we invest here... Our goal is to stay within the ex Yugoslavia and from [Bosnia] go to Serbia, Slovenia, Croatia...” he concludes.
Uzbek Foreign Minister Abdulaziz Kamilov made that much clear when he led a delegation to Iran in October. A business forum held as part of the visit on October 18 saw entrepreneurs of both countries sign agreements worth $25.5mn, mostly in relation to agricultural and textile products. The two sides also signed “mutually beneficial bilateral documents” worth $7.5mn, according
to Trend news agency.
Among other specific topics, Iran and Uzbekistan mulled improving their banking and visa issuance regimes to boost trade.
Uzbekistan the hungrier
When it comes to mutual trade, Uzbekistan is the party with the greater hunger. The delegation's visit concluded with Tashkent and Tehran discussing the possibility of Uzbekistan buying Iranian crude oil – a resource much sought after by the Uzbeks who under Karimov suffered lengthy oil and petrol shortages.
Iranian oil would be a welcome addition to the Rus- sian, Kazakh and Turkmen supplies Uzbekistan secured earlier in the year, although, in the case of the former two, Uzbekistan must first rehabilitate a pipeline before it can bring in any oil flows.
Iran’s Petroleum Minister Bijan Namdar Zangeneh said “high-ranking” Tashkent oil