TEHRAN – Turkey’s consul general in Iran’s northwestern city of Urmia has said that tourist attractions in West Azarbaijan province, including UNESCO-listed sites, are popular among Turkish visitors and called for a direct flight between Ankara and Urmia.
Müslüm Aygün, in an interview with Miras Aria, said Lake Urmia, World Heritage-listed monuments, and cities such as Maku and Khoy were among the most visited destinations for Turkish tourists in the province.
Aygün said Turkey, which has more than 20 UNESCO World Heritage sites, sees scope for expanding tourism cooperation with Iran given the capacities of both countries.
He said several border crossings in West Azarbaijan, including Bazargan, Serow and Razi, are used by tourists travelling between the two countries, adding that Razi handles the highest volume of traffic. Road infrastructure at the crossing is being upgraded, he said.
The consul general added that reconstruction work at the Bazargan border crossing has been underway for five years and is expected to be completed soon, adding that he hoped infrastructure development at the Serow crossing would accelerate.
He said obstacles affecting cross-border tourism needed to be addressed, citing complaints from tourism agencies in Turkey’s Van province over delays in road infrastructure projects on the Iranian side, which he said have led to passenger dissatisfaction.
He also referred to direct flights from Urmia to Iranian cities including Isfahan, Shiraz, Tabriz and Mashhad, as well as to Istanbul, and called for the launch of a direct Urmia–Ankara service and an increase in overall flight frequencies.
Elsewhere in his remarks, the Turkish diplomat highlighted the handicrafts sectors in both countries and said joint handicrafts exhibitions between Iran and Turkey’s border provinces could help strengthen cultural and economic ties.
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