Tehran – The Secretary-General of the Economic Cooperation Organization (ECO) visited the Tehran Times on Tuesday to discuss it with the CEO and editor-in-chief.
He later spoke with a correspondent about his first six months of appointment and his vision for the 10-member organization.
Ambassador Assad Majid Khan said his interactions with local leaders revealed a new willingness to invest in eco and exploit its possibilities.
Below is the full interview:
This is the first interview with an Iranian publication. What are your impressions of Iran so far?
First of all, thank you for hosting me on the Tehran Times. It’s an honor to be here and in fact it’s my first visit to any media outlet in Iran. As someone from Pakistan, an intimate and brotherly neighbour, I feel a deep connection with Iran. We share long borders, rich shared history, culture and economic ties. For me, being here is to update and revive these important connections.
In some respects, given the similarities between Persian and Urdu, it is also a journey of self-discovery. I learn a lot from Iran’s rich culture, great history and incredibly kind people. I really enjoy my time here and look forward to continuing learning and exploring during my stay.
You have been appointed Executive Director of Eco after a prominent career as a diplomat, including ambassadors from multiple regions. What do you think your extensive diplomatic experience will benefit you in this role?
My diplomatic experience is invaluable in this role. As Secretary General, I am the face of eco-friendly and the leader of an organization that strives to reach its full potential. My experience allows me to effectively engage with member states, build consensus and promote progress.
My background includes working as an ambassador to Washington, Brussels (EU) and Japan, as well as working for the United Nations (as a system-wide consistency and coordinator of 77 groups). These experiences provide the skills needed to address the challenges facing ECOs.
Creating connected infrastructure, especially roads, is an important step for eco-states to further increase trade while my experience in West Asia is limited. I consider this role more than work. It’s a mission. I think our region should look inwards, focusing on our commonality. Every neighbor has a problem. However, strong interests can be created through trade and people-connections. I was excited about this opportunity and embraced my commitment to doing my best.
I am fortunate to have strong support and cooperation. The fact that it started this year with five ministerial meetings is historic. It is also ECO’s record to hold meetings at the level of a vice minister. My passion and commitment are reciprocating. Political will may have always been there, but my role is to deal with bureaucratic inertia and promote progress. I’m focusing on that.
As the Executive Director of the ECO over the past six months, what do you think is the most important achievements of the organization during your tenure so far?
For my first six months as ECO Executive Director, my focus has been on addressing the political attention deficit and strengthening the implementation of existing agreements. Six months is a short period, but we have made progress in two important areas. The first is a strategic vision and planning.
Recognizing that 2025 marks the end of Eco’s current “Vision 2025”, we have convened a high-level committee of vice ministers to begin developing a new decade of vision for the organization. This initial discussion informs the revised strategic direction, focusing on strengthening cooperation, and addressing the structural reforms needed to achieve the goals. This includes critically evaluating the way people are recruited and improving the efficiency of the organization.
Our second focus is the support of ministerial engagement and leadership. We have been actively working to increase ministerial involvement. Highlights include the success of a ministerial meeting in Mashhad under the Iranian chairman. This is a groundbreaking event held outside the traditional capital. Based on this momentum, we plan to have a series of important ministerial meetings in tourism, transportation, finance and trade that culminated at the 17th Summit held in Azerbaijan on July 3rd and 4th. The summit aims to ensure a high level of political commitment and address the historic lack of leadership in eco-oriented purposes.
These first steps lay the foundations of eco to more effectively utilize eco history, culture, economic, geography and shared values and maximize its potential. My commitment is not just to integrate efforts, focusing on concrete implementation and impactful outcomes, and to hold meetings.
You mentioned the “political deficit” that hinders the possibility of eco. Could you explain this in more detail? Is it mainly because of bilateral issues between member states, lack of severity in prioritizing ECOs, or the possibility of not being fully recognized?
The political deficit comes from a combination of factors, but I focus on the future. Recent interactions with leaders in Iran and other major member states have shown a new drive to prioritize regional solutions and integration. This is driven by growing concerns about the weaponization of the financial system, unilateral expansion, and the growing trade war. There is a perception that regional trade with neighboring countries in particular benefits all of our economies.
This shift in geopolitics encourages ensuring previously lacking attention. Our member states share a long history and cultural connection, but we also have a diverse economies. Some were previously part of the Soviet Union, accompanied by a mixed economy and limited WTO integration. Others are more closely aligned with the European and Arab systems. Sanctions further hinder smooth regional integration.
With the increasing use of these measurements now, the area is ready to look inwards. And I believe that Iran’s leadership is particularly committed to promoting and further developing ECOs.
Do other environmental leaders also recognize this need for regional cooperation?
Yes, based on my discussions with leadership in Turkey and Pakistan, given that they are members established together with Iran, I can affirm the new preparation and drive of the entire eco region. It is now our responsibility to create conditions for Eco to reach that possibility.
However, Iran in particular plays a key role as an eco host country and champion. Given Iran’s good neighbours policy and the fact that five out of seven land neighbours are ECO members, Eco is an ideal tool to realize the economic component of this strategy. This includes fostering trade integration, transport connections (multimodal connections), energy cooperation, food security through agricultural cooperation, and industrial cooperation.
This cooperation is needed across the region, but the ECO is especially valuable in moving forward with Iran’s existing good neighbours policy. Examples such as the Sarahus border zone, which reflects the Uzbekistan-Tourmanistan model, show the potential to promote trade and even address the challenges of financial trading.
What specific and concrete plans does Eco have for growth and development, not only to ensure political commitments, but especially with regard to investment, bilateral and multilateral trade?
Eco’s comprehensive priority is to operate and implement ECO trade agreements to promote trade integration. This was a challenge, but we hope that after a 14-year hiatus, the Trade Ministers’ Meeting in Istanbul on June 25th will deliver the ultimate expected results.
Second, it focuses on creating connection infrastructure. This requires roads and, as a result, funding is required. You need a Minister of Finance to sign on and you need to attract international financial institutions. Our Eco Development Bank (Eco DB) needs more funding from our members and more members to participate. You cannot implement the agenda unless you can drive business transactions and attract funding for infrastructure projects.
Therefore, we work with our members to encourage Eco DB membership, expand our capital base to attract international funding and support major projects. They are also actively seeking to create financial mechanisms to promote safe business transactions without fear of sanctions.
By Mona Hojat Ansari