TEHRAN, Sep. 26 (MNA) – On the occasion of World Tourism Day, Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani deemed ‘culture’ and ‘foreign policy’ as the two major factors for developing tourism industry in Iran.

Speaking at ceremony in commemoration of World Tourism Day on Sep. 27, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani maintained that Iran is one of the 10 top countries in terms of natural, historical and cultural attractions, and highlighted the significance of developing tourism industry in the country.

During his address on Monday, the President referred to a number of factors that could help boost tourism in Iran, with ‘culture’ being the most important of them; “tourists travel to a country that welcomes them with hospitality and has a high cultural tolerance and pays particular attention to moral behavior.”

“All who have visited Iran, remember the Iranian people as one of the most hospitable and kindest in the world,” Rouhani said, adding “these qualities should be further promoted.”

The president deemed the second most important factor for attracting tourists ‘foreign policy’, saying “if we fail to overcome the Iranophobia conspiracy, no doubt we will fail to attract tourists to our country.”

Rouhani went on to add, “with the nuclear deal, we managed to prove that the PMD was a baseless and unfounded claim. The IAEA, after 13 long years and thousands of unannounced inspections of Iranian nuclear sites, finally admitted that our nuclear program is peaceful. This heralded the end of one of the major anti-Iranian propagandas.”

President Rouhani stressed that today the political situation in Iran is readier than ever for attracting tourists.

Rouhani further referred to economy and banking relations as the two other factors that could impact tourism industry in Iran.

He maintained that his administration has taken good measures for promotion of tourism industry, adding “the number of foreign tourists increased from about 4.7 million in 2012 to over 5.2 million in 2015. This indicates a 10 per cent growth in a year, and the process needs to speed up for the coming years.”

By Mehr News Agency