TEHRAN–During his visit to Kyrgyzstan, Director-General of the Ministry of Cultural Heritage, Tourism and Handicrafts Khorasan Razavi Seyed Javad Mousavi emphasized the importance of cultural exchanges between regional countries.
He said: “One of the valuable cooperation capabilities between ECO member countries is the organization of joint cultural weeks. We will work with our member states to organize a joint cultural week in Khorasan Razavi province, especially in Mashhad city, and invite all ECO member countries to participate in it. They can also organize a joint Nowruz cultural week in member countries located on the Silk Road. These measures will be very effective for the development of cultural exchange and tourism.
Mousavi added that Kyrgyzstan has important capabilities in the fields of ecotourism, geoparks and natural landscapes, and it was decided to develop special plans for the joint use of these capabilities.
Regarding the visit of the Khorasan Razavi delegation to the Osh Cave Museum in Kyrgyzstan, he said, “The visit included a visit to one of the country’s world-class historical monuments with proper infrastructure and the field of handicrafts. “In terms of standardization and training, the capacity of accommodation in this country is still limited and we need to cooperate in training to international standards in this field.” field. ”
Regarding the impact of foreign travel on the tourism development of Khorasan Razavi, Mousavi continued: “Such travel plays an important role in the tourism development of the province. Moreover, the experience of previous trips shows that such opportunities can be used in the direction of tourism diplomacy and regional exchanges.”
Given the current state of our country, the best opportunity to strengthen our diplomacy is through interaction with our neighbors, and we must benefit from these capabilities in the desired way. ”
He further added, “During my last visit to Pakistan, I visited the provinces of Karachi and Lahore, where there is great potential for cooperation. Given that Pakistan has around 40 million passengers and a large Shia population, this unique capability could play an important role in the development of pilgrimage tourism. Fortunately, in the past year, the number of flights between Mashhad and Pakistan has increased to four, creating a very good opportunity for increasing trade and exports.”
Mousavi said: “As for Uzbekistan, preparations are underway for direct flights from Mashhad to Samarkand and Bukhara, and we look forward to expanding these exchanges and communications with other countries in the region.”
KD