Iranian tourism minister Reza Saleh Amiri said on Wednesday that a visa waiver agreement with Belarus has been finalised during a discussion in Minsk between Iranian President Masuud Pezeshkian and his Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, according to Press TV.
Salehi Amiri also said the two countries have agreed to launch direct flights between Tehran and Minsk to increase tourist visits.
He said the visa waiver program and direct flight will significantly increase cultural and tourism ties between Iran and Belarus.
“Tourism can be a strategic bond between the two countries,” the minister said, adding that there was a real interest in Belarus in his visit to Iran’s historic and natural landmarks.
An IRNA News Agency report showed that aviation authorities in Iran and Belarus have agreed to start three direct flights a week between the two countries.
The agreement was part of the 12 Memorandums of Understanding (Mous) signed between Iran and Belarus after a meeting with Pezeshkian and Lukashenko on Wednesday.
According to an IRNA report, Mous overturned cooperation in political relations and fields of international law, manufacturing, medicine, health, the environment and free economic zones.
Pezeshkian’s visit to Minsk is part of an effort by the Iranian government to expand relations with regional countries amid sanctions that restrict access to Iran’s markets and investment in the West.
Pezeschkian arrived in Minsk after a two-day visit to Armenia. There, government ministers and officials signed major economic and trade agreements with Armenian counterparts.
MNA