Afghanistan and Russia have made an agreements on the purchase of oil and gas, according to the Ministry of Commerce and Industry (MoCI), and the agreement will be signed soon.
The acting Minister of Commerce and Industry, Nooruddin Azizi, who has just returned from Russia, said that most of the Afghan and Russian banks are under sanctions and the transfer of money will happen through a third country.
“Some of our technical teams are still in Russia and they want to work on the details, such as what kind of money transfers we may have,” added Azizi.
The acting Minister of Commerce and Industry met with the head of the republic of Tatarstan during his trip to Russia.
“We have offered an official invitation to the head of Tatarstan to visit Afghanistan. They are ready and willing to accept our invitation, and they may do so soon. Once they arrive in Afghanistan, we will sign some formal agreements,” Azizi stated.
Transferring oil from Russia to Afghanistan has been challenging due to sanctions placed on various Russian banks. The amount of trade between Kabul and Moscow has reportedly decreased as a result, according to the Chamber of Commerce and Investment.
The Chamber of Commerce and Investment said that Russian goods, particularly wheat and oil, are less expensive than those from other countries.
“Some problems have arisen in terms of transit and transfers, because there is no sea, products come by rail, and custom services are taken from the territory of any country that is traversed,” said Khan Jan Alikozai, a member of the ACCI.
“Triangle trade can be used, and trade like this, which was actually one of the Soviet Union’s barter movements at that time, can be used in the form of payments,” said Sayed Masoud, an economist.
Afghanistan imports the majority of its food and oil from Russia, where bilateral commerce is worth $200 million annually.
