FM Araghchi Highlights ECO Potentials Driving Enhanced Regional Cooperation

FM Araghchi Highlights ECO Potentials Driving Enhanced Regional Cooperation

During the recent online session of the 29th Meeting of the ECO Council of Ministers (COM), hosted by Kazakhstan, Iranian Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi expressed his gratitude towards the chairmanship of Mr. Beibit Kulatayev, the Director General of the Middle, Near East and Africa Department of Kazakhstan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs. This meeting marks a crucial moment for the Economic Cooperation Organization (ECO), focusing on vital regional developments and cooperation among member countries.

Araghchi, who previously chaired the ECO Council of Foreign Ministers meeting in Iran, highlighted significant prospects for collaboration among member states. He noted the major developments in the ECO region over the past year, particularly the aggressive actions by the Zionist regime and the United States against Iran. He emphasized that these actions were met with a strong defense by Iranian armed forces, showcasing the dangerous model of lawlessness that these aggressions represent.

The minister underscored the importance of the ECO in Iran’s foreign policy and regional diplomacy. He pointed out that President Masoud Pezeshkian’s participation in the ECO Summit held in Azerbaijan exemplified Iran’s commitment to leveraging the potential of ECO member states for collective economic growth in the region. He further mentioned the successful meetings of the ECO ministers of transport and interior in Iran, alongside the ECO trade ministers meeting in Turkey, as significant milestones that would enhance cooperation among member nations.

In his virtual address, Araghchi discussed the ongoing efforts to formulate a vision for ECO over the next decade. He stressed the necessity of adapting economic cooperation frameworks within ECO to respond to both regional and global developments. The meeting also saw the transition of the ECO chairmanship to Pakistan for the year 2026.

The following is the transcript of Foreign Minister Araghchi’s speech:

29th Meeting of ECO Council of Ministers
(Online- 28 November 2025)

Virtual/pre-recorded Statement by
H.E. Dr. Seyed Abbas Araghchi
Honourable Minister of Foreign Affairs of
the Islamic Republic of Iran

بسم الله الرحمن الرحیم

Distinguished Chairman, Minister Yermek Kosherbayev,

Let me begin by congratulating you on your chairmanship of this important ECO Council of Ministers meeting. I extend my greetings to all fellow ministers and officials present in the meeting.

Unfortunately, all attempts, including mine, to maintain the in-person format of this meeting failed, and the Council has to meet virtually today. As the Chairman of the 28th ECO Council of Ministers meeting in Mashhad, I hope our 29th meeting today, despite its online format, can sustain the outstanding role of the ECO Council of Ministers.

The gap since we met in Mashhad in early December 2024 until the 30th COM meeting in 2026 is the longest interval ever between our gatherings, as our annual meeting in New York was also canceled this last fall. We need to have, as many exchanges of views and discussions and retreats as possible to ensure our Organization is functioning at its best. This is specifically important as our Heads of State in the ECO Summits have shown growing attention and interest in the ECO and its success. The Council of Ministers and the ECO Secretariat are, in fact, the key guarantors for the implementation of instructions issued by our leaders.

As I highlighted in the COM meeting in Mashhad, the ECO Region can become one of the most vibrant emerging regions within the Global South if our collective untapped potential and capacities are fully realized. The recent Summits showed that the political will for enhanced ECO exists at the highest levels in our countries. The Council of Ministers, as the highest decision-making body within the ECO, shall constantly reinforce this valuable will and regenerate this momentum.

Distinguished Colleagues,

Since the 28th COM meeting in Mashhad, important developments have occurred in our region. Most notably, in June 2025, the Israeli Zionist regime and the United States committed aggressive, terrorist, and unlawful attacks against Iran, in flagrant violation of all norms and principles of international law and the United Nations Charter. Over 12 days of brutal aggression, they targeted civilians, peaceful nuclear facilities, and public infrastructure, causing significant human casualties and material losses. This also affected the daily functioning of the ECO Secretariat.

Our armed forces exercised their legitimate right to self-defense, protecting the decent people of Iran, our national sovereignty, and territorial integrity while also preventing the spread of war in the region. I thank the ECO Member States for their responsible positions and support shown during the crisis.

Since the last Council meeting in Mashhad, Iran hosted two significant ECO ministerial meetings: the Interior Ministers meeting and the Transport Ministers meeting, which provided line ministries with opportunities to discuss and agree on actions in various areas such as transport and transit, logistics, cross-border movement, disaster management, law enforcement, and drug control. There have also been other ministerial and high-level sectoral meetings across the ECO Region with direct implications for our regional cooperation. A promising development took place just this Wednesday in Istanbul, where ECO trade ministers adopted a two-year roadmap to renegotiate ECOTA, aiming to end the prolonged deadlock in trade liberalization within the ECO Region. This can also enhance cooperation in trade-related areas in our region. Traders and other stakeholders in the ECO Region certainly need to engage in an ECO Free Trade Area in the near future.

After the Council meeting in Mashhad, our colleagues in the foreign ministries and the Secretariat began to develop a new ECO 10-year vision document. We believe that ECO requires some paradigm shifts and a redesign of its architecture. We must not continue with the same format and directions for the new vision while ignoring the drastic changes and challenges at the global and regional levels.

Our countries should become more resilient, integrated, and powerful against potential future risks and shocks. The ECO remains the best existing platform for our countries to develop and prosper collectively. The ECO Vision Committee should craft a more fitting, effective, and feasible document for the next 10 years. Any vision and goals should also aim to enhance our region’s physical and technological interconnectivity.

We congratulate Turkmenistan for successfully hosting the “Third UN Conference on Landlocked Developing Countries” in August 2025. As a transit country, Iran is prepared to cooperate with the ECO Secretariat and the Member States to implement the “Awaza Programme of Action” in our region for the benefit of all seven ECO landlocked countries.

Mr. Chairman, Distinguished Colleagues,

Iran’s full support for the ECO is absolutely unconditional and undeniable. President Pezeshkian’s participation in the ECO Summit in Khankandy exemplified this policy when he attended the Summit during the Israeli and US attacks against our country.

Promisingly, over the last decade, we have witnessed an enhanced sense of ownership and engagement within the ECO Membership. This spirit needs to be regenerated and reinforced. We are grateful to the Islamic Republic of Pakistan for accepting to fill the chairmanship gap and take over the ECO chairmanship as of January 1, 2026.

In conclusion, I wish to thank Ambassador Asad Majeed Khan, the ECO Secretary General, for his visionary leadership of the ECO Secretariat. I also take this opportunity to welcome Minister Mottaghi from Afghanistan to our meeting today.

I thank you for your attention.

This meeting reflects the importance of cooperation among ECO member states in addressing regional challenges and enhancing economic collaboration. The ongoing dialogue and initiatives are essential for fostering a strong and united ECO that can effectively respond to both current and future challenges.

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