Qeshm Island, Guangdong to establish direct flight

Qeshm Island, Dec 10, IRNA – Iran plans to establish a direct flight between Qeshm Free Trade Zone(QFTZ) and China's Guangdong province, Managing Director of Qeshm Island Esfandiyar Heidaripour said here on Sunday. He made the remarks in a meeting with South Korean Ambassador to Tehran Sunghoon Yoon. “Making direct flights between QFTZ and Guangdong is a priority in Iran’s economic policy for broadening economic relations with the Southeast Asian countries,” he added. Pointing to the Qeshm Island potentials, Heidaripour noted that there are 17 oil and gas fields in the region. He said that QFTZ organization welcomes the expansion of trade exchanges and cooperation with the South Korean free trade zones. South Korean ambassador to Tehran, for his part, termed Qeshm Island as having high potentials for investment. He pointed out that given the Qeshm Island's strategic geographical situation, it can become one of the Middle East's best free trade zones. Qeshm is an Iranian island located in the Strait of Hormuz, and separated from the mainland by the Khuran Strait in the Persian Gulf. Qeshm Island is located a few kilometers off the southern coast of Iran (Persian Gulf), opposite the port cities of Bandar Abbas and Bandar Khamir. The island, which hosts a 300 square kilometer free zone jurisdiction, is 135 km long, and lies strategically in the Strait of Hormuz, just 60 kilometers from the Omani port of Khasab, and about 180 kilometers from the UAE Port Rashid. The island, at its widest point, located near the center of the island, spans 40 kilometers. Similarly, at its narrowest point, the island spans 9.4 kilometers. The island has a surface area of 1,491 square kilometers and is 2.5 times the size of Bahrain. Qeshm city, located at the easternmost point of the island, is 22 kilometers from Bandar Abbas while the closest point of the island is about two kilometers from the mainland. The island comprises 59 towns and villages and the population is approximately 100,000. The local population is involved in fishing, dhow construction, trade and services. An additional 30,000 are involved in administrative and industrial workforce and students. Plans have also been made to build a bridge to connect Qeshm with the rest of Iran.