that Iran and Iraq had agreed to work toward Middle East stability. Commerce Iran plays an important role in the Iraqi reconstruction. Iran's non-oil exports to Iraq were valued at $1.8 billion in 2007 and $2.3 billion in 2008. Each month, more than 40,000 Iranians visit Shiite holy sites such as Najaf and Karbala, buying religious souvenirs and supporting the economy through tourism. Iraq imports cars, construction materials, medicine, fruits, spices, fish, air conditioners, office furniture, carpets and apparel from Iran. Basra alone imports $45 million of goods from Iran each year, including carpets, construction materials, fish and spices. Each day, 100 to 150 commercial trucks transport goods from Iran to Iraq through the nearby Shalamcheh border crossing (2008). As of January 2010, the two countries signed over 100 economic and cooperation agreements. The volume of trade between Iran and Iraq reached $12 billion in 2013. The main areas of trade between the two countries are the construction, food and industrial sectors. See also Arab–Iran relations Greater Iran Iraqis in Iran Shia crescent References Further reading Abdulghani, Jasim M. Iraq and Iran (Routledge, 2011) online. Chubin, Shahram, and Charles Tripp. Iran and Iraq at War (Routledge, 2020) online review Ehsani, Kaveh. "War and Resentment: Critical Reflections on the Legacies of the Iran-Iraq War." in Debating the Iran-Iraq War in Contemporary Iran (Routledge, 2019) pp. 3-22. online Karsh, Efraim. "Geopolitical determinism: The origins of the Iran-Iraq war." Middle East Journal 44.2 (1990): 256-268. online Potter, Lawrence, and Gary Sick, eds. Iran, Iraq, and the legacies of war (Springer, 2004). Swearingen, Will D. "Geopolitical origins of the Iran-Iraq war." Geographical Review (1988): 405-416. online Takeyh, Ray. "The Iran-Iraq War: A Reassessment." Middle East Journal 64.3 (2010): 365-383. Woods, Kevin M., et al. Saddam's War: An Iraqi Mililtary Perspective of the Iran-Iraq War (U.S. Government Printing Office, 2009) online. External links Iraq and Iran: The Years of Crisis – A book which explores Iran–Iraq relations Iraq Bilateral relations of Iraq Relations of colonizer and former colony