TEHRAN — Iran and Uzbekistan are seeking to turn their shared historical and cultural heritage into practical cooperation, with officials from both countries proposing joint tourism packages, cultural exhibitions, heritage conservation projects and expanded handicrafts exchanges.
Iranian Minister of Cultural Heritage, Tourism and Handicrafts Seyyed Reza Salehi-Amiri said the two countries should develop multidestination tourism packages linking major cultural destinations in Iran and Uzbekistan, including cities such as Isfahan, Shiraz, Samarkand and Bukhara.
The proposal was made during a meeting in Tehran with Bahramjan Alaev, Uzbekistan’s deputy foreign minister, where both sides emphasized the depth of their historical and civilizational ties.
Salehi-Amiri called for the establishment of a joint tourism working group and stronger people-to-people connections. He also identified medical tourism as a major area for cooperation, citing Iran’s medical expertise, hospital capacity and relatively low treatment costs. Improved air connectivity between the two countries, he said, would be essential to increasing visitor numbers.
Uzbekistan reported hosting 23,000 Iranian visitors last year, with a further 11,000 arriving during the first six months of this year. Alaev said Tashkent was
 ready to work with Tehran on joint tourism packages to increase these flows.
The officials also highlighted opportunities for cooperation in the conservation and restoration of historic monuments. Alaev proposed establishing a joint committee to facilitate the exchange of restoration specialists, including Iranian master craftsmen and conservation experts.
Iran and Uzbekistan are also preparing a joint UNESCO nomination concerning felt-making, according to Ali Darabi, Iran’s deputy minister for cultural heritage. He proposed expanding cooperation through museum exhibitions and joint cultural events.
Handicrafts emerged as another priority. Salehi-Amiri said Iran was ready to host handicrafts exhibitions in Tehran and Tashkent and noted that the country has more than 600,000 handicraft artisans.
Alaev, meanwhile, asked Iran to send 10 leading handicraft artists to Uzbekistan to train local practitioners, underscoring the potential for direct skills transfer between the two countries.
The Iranian minister also proposed using media, cultural figures and influential personalities from Uzbekistan to promote Iran’s tourism and heritage attractions.