Nawroz a shared regional festival: Karzai

KABUL): President Hamid Karzai on Sunday called Nawroz (new year) a shared cultural festival that reflects centuries-old relations among regional countries.

The festival was marked in Dushanbe on the eve of the 5th Regional Economic Cooperation Conference on Afghanistan and Iran are in Dushanbe for the summit.

Karzai thanked the people and government of Tajikistan for giving him a chance to attend Nawroz celebrations with his Tajik brothers and their hospitality, the Presidential Palace in Kabul said.

“I am happy to be with my Tajik brothers in this beautiful city on the wonderful occasion,” Karzai said, calling Nawroz a symbol of happiness for regional countries.

The festival was also attended by representatives from China, Turkmenistan, Azerbaijan, Uzbekistan, the United Nations and other international organisations.

The host, Tajik president Imam Ali Rahman welcomed guests and congratulated them on celebrating the festival with Tajikistanis.

 “We have to keep our shared tradition alive because it has been declared as a worldwide festival by the UN,” he said, hoping the occasion would send a message of peace, happiness and prosperity to the region.

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said the message of Nawroz was peace and solidarity. The celebrations should be extended in the region, he suggested.

On behalf of Pakistani people, President Asif Ali Zardari congratulated regional countries on the festival. The participants vowed to celebrate the upcoming Nawroz festival in Ashkhabad, the capital of Turkmenistan.

mm/ma/mud

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