CPAFFC Delegation Visits Iran and Oman

At the invitation of the Iran-China Friendship Association (ICFA) and the Oman-China Friendship Association (OCFA)， a 12-member CPAFFC delegation led by Vice President Feng Zuoku visited the two countries from October 17 to 25， 2014.

In Iran， the delegation attended the 5th Annual Conference of China-Iran Friendship Associations and the Forum on the Iran-China Relationship， and paid official calls on leading officials of the Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance， and the Iran Cultural Heritage， Handicraft and Tourism Organization. They had an in-depth discussion on carrying out the Belt and Road Initiatives and strengthening bilateral cooperation in culture and tourism. In Oman， the delegation met leading officials of the Public Authority for Investment Promotion and Export Development， the Oman Chamber of Commerce and Industry， A’Sharqiyah University and the OCFA， and had talks with Omani businesspeople.

5th Annual Conference of China-Iran Friendship Association

and Forum on the Iran-China Relationship

ICFA President Ahad Mohammadi addressed the opening ceremony of the annual conference， saying the Iran-China relationship had a long history and there was huge potential for cooperation in the areas of energy and tourism. Iran attached great importance to the initiatives of developing the economic belt along the Silk Road and the Maritime Silk Road of the 21st Century proposed by Chinese President Xi Jinping， and was willing to promote cooperation in economy and trade promotion， culture and tourism.

The friendship associations of the two countries should play a more important role. For this purpose， he suggested they jointly hold a forum on revival of the Silk Road， study the potential of cooperation in its development and hold related exhibitions and meetings. He hoped Chinese companies would invest in hotels and Chinese restaurants so as to attract more Chinese tourists to visit Iran.

At the Forum， participants briefed about their work in developing tourism and cultural programs and youth exchanges， and discussed how to strengthen cooperation in culture， economy， trade， tourism， language teaching and youth exchanges， and the friendship associations’ role in public diplomacy.

At the closing ceremony， Feng Zuoku and Ahad Mohammadi signed a Memorandum of Understanding on Cooperation between the CPAFFC and the ICFA.

Iran Hopes to Strengthen Practical Cooperation with China

In his meeting with the delegation， Ali Moradkhani， Vice Minister of Culture and Islamic Guidance and a member of the ICFA， said Iran and China were important countries with ancient civilizations. Iran attached great importance to the relationship and was willing to strengthen cooperation.

The Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance is one of Iran’s most important ministries， responsible for art， films， publication and news affairs. He suggested the two associations establish a joint committee to conduct art exchanges and hold film weeks. The Iranian side could provide part of the funds for making a promotional documentary “Made in China” that would be filmed by an Iranian director， invite Chinese painters to Iran to sketch from nature， and organize Silk Road art trips.

Morteza Rahmani， Vice Chairman of the Iran Cultural Heritage， Handicraft and Tourism Organization， said， tourism was an important component of state-to-state public relations. Historically， official relations had ebbs and flows because of changes of governments， but friendship between peoples continued especially through tourism. Now， Iran was making efforts to draw Chinese tourists and was ready to provide high-quality services， he said. There was huge potential for cooperation and was an important task for the friendship associations of the two countries in the fields of tourism， culture and art.

Feng Zuoku said the Chinese side would take seriously the suggestion made by the Iranian side to conduct practical cooperation within the framework of the Belt and Road Initiatives， and make active efforts to implement the relevant projects. They should encourage youth exchanges to carry on the traditional friendship. Both sides could also cooperate in organizing Chinese media on self-drive trips in Iran to publicize the country.

Delegation member Chen Aizhen， Vice President of the Zhejiang Provincial People’s Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries said that， in cooperation with the Iranian side， it would organize Chinese women painters for painting trips along the Silk Road.

Oman Values its Contacts with China and Explores Bilateral Exchanges

in Various Areas

Oman set much store by the delegation’s visit， even though it lasted only one-and-a-half days. Quite a few institutions had contacted the Oman-China Friendship Association hoping it would help develop bilateral exchanges.

Leading officials and businessmen of the Public Authority for Investment Promotion and Export Development and the Oman Chamber of Commerce and Industry respectively had talks with the delegation， briefing about Oman’s policies on attracting foreign investment and discussing bilateral cooperation in areas such as tourism and new energy.

Abudulla Al Busaidy， a member of the Omani royal family and Vice President of A’sharqiyah University， entertained the delegation. He said， A’sharqiyah University， one of the important private universities in Oman， hoped to strengthen cooperation with China in teaching and learning the Chinese language and traditional Chinese medicine.

Khalid Al-Saidi， Secretary General of the State Council of Oman and member of the OCFA， said Oman hoped to cooperate with China in construction of railways and ports， alternative energy sources， Chinese language teaching， compilation of dictionaries and other areas.

Mushtaq Al-Saleh， former Omani Ambassador to China and member of the OCFA， said， 2015 marked the 25th anniversary of Sohar vessel’s arrival in Guangzhou. The OCFA was willing to collaborate in a forum on the Maritime Silk Road and relevant celebration activities.

Feng Zuoku said， the friendly relations between China and Oman were well established. Oman was a major spot on the Maritime Silk Road. China was willing to strengthen cooperation with the Omani side.