“While Iraq was the third biggest among Iran's export destination, it moved up to the second this year,” said Hameed Hosseini told IRNA in an interview.

“Iraq's import from Iran was $4.5b, while that of China, the first rank on the list, was $4.6b. The wee difference implies that Iraq may surpass China to top the list.”

The official further stated that Iran has been the third importer from Iraq, after China and Turkey, adding that Iran's export grew 14% in the half-year time, the country's export to Iraq upped 45% in the period.

Referring to the US sanctions on Iran, he said that the only pressure the US can impose on Iraq is banking transactions with Iran. And that's because 45% of the biggest Iraqi bank is owned by US JPMorgan Chase.

Reporter’s code: 50101