Iranian media reports say the Iranian Cabinet has decided to unilaterally cancel visa requirements for visitors from 33 more countries, including Tajikistan.
IRNA reports that speaking to reporters after a cabinet meeting, Iranian Minister of Cultural Heritage, Tourism, and Handicrafts Ezzatollah Zarghami said on December 13 that the decision is aimed at boosting tourism arrivals and attracting more visitors from countries around the world.
Iranian official added that efforts to boost tourism can neutralize Iranophobia campaigns.
The 33 countries approved for Iran’s new visa-waiver program are as follows: 1- Republic of India; 2- Russian Federation (in group visits); 3- United Arab Emirates; 4- Kingdom of Bahrain; 5- Kingdom of Saudi Arabia; 6- Kingdom of Qatar; 7- Kingdom of Kuwait; 8- Republic of Lebanon; 9- Republic of Uzbekistan; 10- Republic of Kyrgyzstan; 11- Republic of Tajikistan; 12- Republic of Tunisia; 13- Islamic Republic of Mauritania; 14- United Republic of Tanzania; 15- Republic of Zimbabwe; 16- Republic of Mauritius; 17- Republic of Seychelles; 18- Republic of Indonesia; 19- Brunei Darussalam; 20- Kingdom of Japan; 21- Republic of Singapore; 22- Kingdom of Cambodia; 23- Kingdom of Malaysia; 24- Socialist Republic of Vietnam; 25- Federal Republic of Brazil; 26- Republic of Peru; 27- Republic of Cuba; 28- United States of Mexico; 29- Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela; 30- Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina; 31- Republic of Serbia; 32- Republic of Croatia; and 33- Republic of Belarus.
That reportedly comes as Iran had visa waiver programs for visitors from Türkiye, Republic of Azerbaijan, Oman, China, Armenia, Lebanon and Syria.
IRNA says that according to the latest statistics, the number of foreign arrivals in Iran reached 4.4 million during the first eight months of the current Iranian year (started on March 21), an increase of 48.5% compared to the same period last year.
Recall the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the Government of Tajikistan and the Government of the Islamic Republic of Iran on exemption of visas for holders of passports for international travels for citizens of Tajikistan and Iran was signed in Dushanbe on November 8 this year during Iranian President Sayyid Ebrahim Raisi’s official visit to Dushanbe.
Since the collapse of the Soviet Union, Tajikistan and Iran have naturally enjoyed a close and strong relationship with the two often being described as "one spirit in two bodies" by the ex-president of Iran Mahmoud Ahmadinejad due to both being Persian-speaking and Iranic countries.
Iran was the first nation to establish an embassy in Dushanbe. It was also one of the first countries to extend diplomatic recognition of the newly independent Tajikistan in 1991.
During the civil war in Tajikistan, Iran offered to mediate between the two factions. In 1995, Tajikistan opened its first embassy in Tehran, one of the few outside of the former USSR. Relations have since grown stronger, as the two nations cooperate in the energy sector and officials from both nations have supported stronger ties.
Tajikistan and Iran have traditionally close relations, sharing many similar cultural, religious and ethnic identifiers and Iran has been a major sponsor of essential hydropower infrastructure in Tajikistan, but Iran has angered Tajikistan by inviting the Islamic Revival Party (IRPT) leader Muhiddin Kabiri to attend the International Islamic Unity Conference that took place in Tehran on December 27-29, 2015.
Tajikistan started taking efforts to improve its relations with the Islamic Republic of Iran in early 2019, and the long period of chill in relations between Tajikistan and Iran has come to an end. There was clear evidence of that in late May last year, when Tajik President Emomali Rahmon paid an official visit to Tehran and signed 17 cooperation agreements. The documents entail political, economic and trade cooperation between Tehran and Dushanbe, relations in the transportation sector, joint investment, new technologies, environmental issues, the energy sector, sports interaction, judicial cooperation, research and training, as well as the tourism industry.
In June 2022, Deputy Iranian Interior Minister for Security and Police Affairs Sayed Majid Mirahmadi, visited Dushanbe to attend the first meeting of the joint security task force between Iran and Tajikistan.
In September this year, Tajik President Emomali Rahmon and his Iranian counterpart Sayyid Ebrahim Raisi held talks in New York on the margins of the 78th session of the United Nations General Assembly.
According to the Tajik president’s official website, the two presidents discussed further expansion of the bilateral cooperation and a number of topical and regional issues being of mutual interest.
The parties also discussed cooperation between the two countries within international and regional organizations.
Besides, Rahmon and Raisi exchanged views “on a tendency of increasing modern challenges and threats such as terrorism, extremism, drug trafficking, transnational organized crime and cybercrime, which create serious problems for the security of the countries.”
It was emphasized that Tajikistan and Iran, as the closest neighbors, are interested in restoration of peace and stability in Afghanistan.
During the official visit of Iranian President Sayyid Ebrahim Raisi to Dushanbe in November this year, 19 cooperation documents were signed between the two countries, but 16 of them are MoUs.
