TEHRAN (Mehr News) — The Turkmen ambassador to Tehran says Iran and Turkmenistan need to continue talks to solve technical matters concerning their joint gas projects.

Alaeddin Boroujerdi

Chairman of Iran’s Parliament National Security and Foreign Policy Commission Alaeddin Boroujerdi met and talked with Turkmenistan Ambassador to Iran Ahmad Ghorbanov in Tehran on Tuesday.

“The relations between the two countries have always been good and positive which is a solid foundation for developing political, economic and cultures ties between them”, Boroujerdi, was quoted as saying by Iranian Oil Ministry website SHANA.

Mr. Boroujerdi further said that implementation of a gas pipeline project between the two countries can also enhance their economic and trade ties.

The Turkmen ambassador, for his part, said that talks between the two neighbours were needed in order to finalize a gas deal between them.

As of January 1, 2017, Turkmenistan cut gas supply to the Islamic Republic for the delayed payment. Central Asian nation had stopped gas exports because of arrears, which amounted to about $1.8 bln and dated back more than a decade. The National Iranian Gas Company (NIGC) claimed that Turkmengaz, the Turkmen state gas company, had cut gas supplies to Iran — violating a 20-year-old gas deal.

Meanwhile, Reuters reported thatTehran is ready to file a case with the International Court of Arbitration (ICA) over the quality and price of gas it receives from Turkmenistan, the Iranian oil minister said on Monday, as a dispute between the two nations over payments escalates. The managing director of the NIGC, Hamid Reza Araghi, had said in December that Tehran would prefer dialogue to resolve the disputes rather than resorting to international arbitration.