Japan to explore ways of normalizing economic ties with Iran

After the nuclear deal, the Iranian capital has turned into the most visited destination of foreign delegations that have a purpose to explore opportunities to enter the vast Iranian market.

Following European countries, now Asian countries are sending their representatives to Iran to take greater benefits after lifting sanctions on the Islamic Republic.

Japan is sending a senior trade and industry official to Iran along with executives from the oil, gas, and other industries after a landmark agreement reached on the country's disputed nuclear program.

Daishiro Yamagiwa, vice minister of the Ministry of Economy, Trade, and Industry, will visit Tehran to meet top government officials on August 8 and 9, according to an emailed statement by the ministry on August 7, Reuters reported.

Yamagiwa will convey Japan's strong desire to quickly normalize economic relations once sanctions are lifted, according to the report.

Japan was one of 11 nations exempted from sanctions on countries that buy oil from Iran. However, Japan’s oil imports from Iran were slashed in line with the country’s support for the international community over Iran’s nuclear energy program.

Japan's foreign policy toward Iran has been driven by its thirst for stable and reliable energy supplies, with Iran continuing to be Japan's third-largest oil supplier after Saudi Arabia and the UAE, according to the Wharton School of Business in the U.S.

The U.S. government admitted that energy-poor countries like Japan have suffered more from the sanctions on Iran.

U.S. National Security Advisor Susan Rice has recently said that with U.S.-led sanctions over Iran's nuclear program, countries like India and Japan have paid an economic price for sanctions against the Islamic Republic and they may no longer feel obliged to do so if the pact is scuttled by Congress.

Japan is also considering further cooperation with Iran in other sectors. Japan and Iran have recently discussed the potential and prospect for cooperation in Iran’s automobile industry.

In a symposium recently held in Japan, representatives from several Japanese automotive companies and Iranian business groups studied ways to expand cooperation and share technologies between the automotive sectors of the two countries.

Trade between the two countries has dipped significantly in recent years, though supplies of vehicles like Mitsubishi, Honda, and Toyota continued even during the most stringent point of sanctions.

The trade balance between the two countries has historically been in favor of Iran, with cars being the major source of imports from the country. In 2010, Japan cooperated with Iran on several major projects and the annual trade between the two states exceeded $11 billion at its height.