Tehran – Iranian Minister of Cultural Heritage, Tourism and Handicrafts Seiyed Reza Salehi Amiri highlights the major imbalance in the tourism exchange between Iran and Turkey, calling for a strategic review of policies to achieve a more equitable flow of tourists between the two nations.
During his visit to Erzurum, Turkey, for the tourism conference of the 6th Eco Ministerial Conference, Salehiamili noted that over 3.5 million Iranians traveled to Turkey last year, compared to around 580,000 Turkish tourists visiting Iran. “This meaningful difference calls for a revision of the two countries’ tourism interaction policies and the realization of strategic balance within the framework of cultural diplomacy,” he said.
The minister emphasized the shared cultural heritage between Iran and Turkey, and these commonalities strongly offer the potential for strong cooperation in expanded cooperation in the fields of cultural heritage, handicrafts and co-cultural programming, ISNA reported.
Salehi-Amiri has announced plans to hold two major cultural events in Tehran and the other in Turkish cities as part of an initiative based on the “Co-Cultural Year” declared by the two countries.
“Through the tools of culture and art, we aim to deepen the bonds between nations. Every tourist visiting Iran will become cultural ambassadors who can present a true image to the world,” he said.
Prior to the Ministerial Conference, Salehi Amiri highlighted the importance of introducing Iran’s vast tourism assets to member states of economic cooperation institutions in advance of the Ministerial Meeting in various interviews with media representatives, and outlined Iran’s strategic goals regarding the assembly.
“Iran must play an active role in strengthening the organization and achieving regional objectives as one of the founding members of the ECO and as a host of Tehran’s permanent secretariat,” he said.
Furthermore, the Iranian minister emphasized Iran’s commitment to strengthen bilateral and multilateral cooperation within the ECO and proposed an initiative to stimulate the shared tourism capabilities of the region.
Elsewhere in his remarks, Salehi-Amiri emphasized that aggressive tourism diplomacy can pave the way for attracting foreign investment, particularly from Eco member states.
Among the key topics Iran pursues at the conference is mutual designation of tourism destinations between environmental countries and strengthening cultural ties, he added.
“In the current sensitive local situation, tourism and culture could serve as important tools to promote sustainable economic, cultural and social convergence between nations,” concluded Salehiamiri.
Eco is an over 8 million square kilometre intergovernmental regional organization that sieges countries in Europe, the Caucus, Central and Western Asia, and connects Russia with more than 460 million inhabitants and Europe. According to the organization, its overall objective is to achieve sustainable economic development across member states and regions.
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