Dubai: Iran's announcement that it is lifting visa requirements for visitors from neighbouring countries doesn't include citizens of Gulf Cooperation Council countries, Iranian sources in Tehran said on Monday.
The announcement by Iran's foreign minister Manouchehr Mottaki on Sunday, which received considerable regional media and public attention, also doesn't include any other Arab country except Syria, whose citizens are already exempt from obtaining a visa to visit Iran, the sources said.
Mottaki has not specified any country by name in his statement, as Iran "seeks all [its] neighbouring countries to have reciprocal treatment and not just only from one side", Amir Mousavi, a Tehran-based analyst, said.
In a short statement carried by several Iranian media outlets, Mottaki was quoted as announcing "lifting of visa requirements for visitors of neighbouring countries."
According to Mottaki "the new measure aims to strengthen ties and enhance communications among the countries of the region."
Iran has already lifted visa requirements for Turkey and Azerbaijan, and would enact a similar agreement with Georgia in the near future, Mottaki was quoted as saying by the Iranian news agency Irna.
Other citizens from neighbouring countries are required to obtain a visa prior to arrival, including Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan, the Iranian sources explained to Gulf News.
The three countries were listed under the same category of countries whose citizens require certain procedures to obtain a visa such as the US, UK, Col-ombia and Somalia.
Citizens of other countries, including the Gulf, are required to obtain a visa to enter Iran. However, the entry permits are issued to them upon arrival at the airport, the Iranian sources said.
While the Iranian media related Mottaki's announcement with the current "stringent measures" imposed by many western countries on visitors and tourists, many observers believe Tehran's move comes within its efforts to open up to the rest of the world amid increasing pressures on Iran over its nuclear programme and more UN economic sanctions.
Almost a year ago, Iran took a series of steps to encourage the entrance of foreigners to Iran, including establishing an office at the airport to issue visas to boost tourism.
"That was purely a touristic decision to encourage tourism into the country," Mousavi said.
"Iran wanted people to come and see the situation [inside the country by themselves] amid the scary media environment about the country abroad," he added.
