TEHRAN - Uzbek Parliament Speaker Nurdinjon Ismoilov traveled to Isfahan on Sunday morning to visit historical attractions of the ancient city.

He is accompanied by an Uzbek parliamentary delegation. In Isfahan, the Uzbek official met with Seyed Reza Mortazavi, the provincial governor. 

“Isfahan is not an unfamiliar city to us, because in the works of all the poets and writers we read, we know what kind of city Isfahan is, and the wish of every Uzbek is to see this beautiful city,” Ismoilov said upon arriving in Isfahan. “I am proud and happy to be in Isfahan.”

“Of course, not only us, but all the inhabitants of the East should be proud of this historical and ancient city,” he added, according to Mehr News. 

Ismoilov noted, “Our trip to Iran is in line with the development of relations between the two countries. At the beginning of our arrival in Iran, we had meetings with the Speaker of the Parliament and the President of Iran and we want to develop the relations between the two countries.”

He added, “In the current situation, the development of tourism is one of our most important priorities in Uzbekistan, and that is why today we have traveled to Isfahan, which is one of the main tourism centers in Iran.”

The governor of Isfahan province expressed hope that Ismoilov’s visit would strengthen relations between Iran and Uzbekistan. “We hope that this trip will be a basis for promoting relations in economic, tourism and cultural fields,” he said. 

Moilov arrived in Tehran late on Friday and met Saturday with his Iranian counterpart Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf and President Ebrahim Raisi. 

Ismoilov visited Iran at the invitation of Qalibaf. He headed an Uzbek parliamentary delegation. 

At a joint press briefing, Qalibaf said improving relations with Iran’s neighbors is a priority of Iran’s foreign policy. 

He added, “We are very happy that today we are hosting the Speaker of the Parliament of Uzbekistan and that he has made his trip to Iran. According to the policies of the Islamic Republic of Iran, which has prioritized the development of relations with neighboring countries and the region, especially Islamic countries, the development of relations with Uzbekistan is one of our priorities.” 

Iran’s top MP went on to say, “One of the important axes of our interactions in the development of relations with Uzbekistan is the political, economic and cultural spheres, and as our dear nation knows, the friendly and brotherly country of Uzbekistan ranks first among Central Asian countries in terms of population.”

The speaker of the parliament noted, “We have good and favorable opportunities in the development of economic, transportation and transit relations with Uzbekistan, especially in the use of the important North-South corridor and the East-West corridor, the development of transit relations can play a role.”

Raisi and Ismoilov also reviewed the implementation of agreements between the two countries. 

“18 cooperation agreements and memoranda of understanding have been signed between the Islamic Republic of Iran and Uzbekistan, and the acceleration of their implementation will greatly increase the level of relations,” Raisi said, according to the official website of the Iranian presidency.

He further added, “The exchange of experiences between the parliaments of Iran and Uzbekistan will be an effective and positive step towards development of relations between the two countries.”

The Chairman of the Legislative Chamber of Uzbekistan, for his part, praised the foreign policy of Ayatollah Raisi in prioritizing development of relations with neighbors and said, “In Uzbekistan, in line with this principled policy, during the amendment of the Constitution, the development of relations with neighbors in given priority.”