In the opening ceremony of ITSR’s joint workshop with Korea Institue for International Economic Policy and Korea Institute for Industrial Economics and Trade on industrial and trade policy, Dr.Razavi welcomed Dr.Joo, Dr.Suh, Dr.Kim and Dr.Lee for taking the time off from their busy schedules to attend ITSR’s workshop. Moreover, Dr.Razavi thanked the delegation from Embassy of Republic of Korea in Tehran for attending the workshop and their financial support for the joint effort between KIEP, KIET and ITSR. 
Dr.Razavi stated that in the past few months, ITSR has been able to sign and implement cooperation agreements with KIEP and KIET, and since then has been exploring different channels for expanding its research and educational relations. “We believe, enhanced relations with our Korean colleagues, will result in further understanding of the two markets and countries for policy makers and business communities in both countries” he emphasized. 
South Korea has been, in recent years, one of Iran's main trade partners. Before the sanctions, South Korea exported $3-4 billion worth of goods to Iran annually. Iran's exports to South Korea topped $1.39 billion for the March 2011-2012 fiscal year. However, based on figures released by the Islamic Republic of Iran Customs Administration, during the eight months to November 20, 2016, Iran's non-oil exports to South Korea saw a sharp rise and exceeded $2.14 billion, 16 times as much compared to the whole of last year. This is while imports from South Korea decreased to almost the same amount during the eight-month period.
The sheer volume of this bilateral exchange between Iran and South Korea, emphasizes the importance of relations between scholar and policy communities of the two countries to constantly update and refresh the understanding of each other about what is running on the ground. 
In Dr.Razavi’s opinion, given the current state of the Iranian economy, in numerous areas, Iranian scholars and policy makers could learn a good deal by reviewing and analyzing Korean trade and industrial development policies.  Korean export-based growth strategy which hurled the country from exports valuing tens of billions dollars to hundreds of billions of dollar in the span of two decades offers an inspiring story for any nation planning high levels of growth in the present time. In addition, he mentioned a special feature of Korea’s export portfolio which is its diversified markets. This diversification of markets and a growing diversity of exported goods have helped South Korea during times of recession in different parts of the world. In 2009, for example, Korean export growth was the highest among the OECD countries. In this regard, Korea provides valuable lessons in putting in place a generally favorable environment for exporters combined with selective interventions to speed up growth and diversification.
Unlike many countries, which back at the 60s focused on the import substitution strategies, South Korea strongly emphasized on export promotion strategies which meant intensively engaging in free trade agreements as well as preferential trade agreements with as many countries as possible. Therefore South Korea has an extensive background in negotiating trade deals, and being one of the founding members of the World Trade Organization, an intricate understanding of the organization itself and its different processes.
Given Iran’s accession bid to the WTO, Iranian scholars and policy makers could make good use of this experience. Moreover, Seoul can play an important role in helping Iran enter the international market and becoming a WTO member using its leveraged in numerous trade agreements. In return, Iran with access to the 400-million market of the region can be a hub for the redistribution of Korean goods; further partnerships in O&G refinery and distribution of downstream petrochemical products could also be envisaged. 
Dr.Razavi argued that there are many untapped production capacities in Iran which provide the Koreans with ample opportunities for starting joint ventures with Iranian partners, which will carry with them considerable added-value for the two sides. In addition, pursuing joint infrastructure projects in transportation and power sectors of the region could play a significant role in facilitating trade and production flow between Korea and the West Asia Region. 
Promoting exports and enhancing trade relations will be absolutely critical for Iran’s growth and its ability to create new jobs in the next ten years. In this manner, organizing discussion platforms between scholars and policy makers of business partners and target markets is an efficient channel for better understanding bilateral priorities and facilitating trade. ITSR hopes that these encounters will trigger new initiative and efforts on the Iranian side and be reflected in our implemented trade and industrial policies.