TEHRAN (Tasnim) � An Iranian official announced that Tehran and Baghdad are in talks over removing sunken vessels from the river bed of the Arvand Rood, a river shared by Iran and Iraq, in a bid to boost shipment through the waterway.







"We need a mutual understanding between the two neighboring countries to remove vessels sunk in this waterway in the joint area between Iran and Iraq," Hadi Haqshenas, deputy head of Iran's Ports and Maritime Organization, told the Tasnim News Agency.

Iran has pulled out a large number of sunken vessels from parts of the river belonging to the Islamic Republic, but removing those in areas shared by the two countries requires the agreement of both Tehran and Baghdad, he explained.

Currently, vessels with drafts of 5 to 7 meters can navigate through Arvand, but if the river is dredged and the wrecks are removed, the draft can be increased to 10 meters, he added.

Haqshenas went on to say that Iranian and Iraqi officials made a couple of reciprocal visits last year to discuss the issue.

He expressed the hope that an agreement will be reached between the two countries this year.

The Arvand Rood is a 200-kilometer-long stretch of water at the Iran-Iraq border.

By Tasnim News Agency