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Laman Ismayilova

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Chairman of the Azerbaijan State Tourism Agency Fuad Naghiyev and the Israeli Minister of Tourism Haim Katz have discussed the current state of Azerbaijani-Israeli tourism relations ties.

The sides touched upon the activities of the Azerbaijan Tourism Board's office in Tel Aviv and exchanged views on increasing the number of direct flights between the two countries, student exchange programs, cooperation in B2B (business to business) and B2C (business to consumer) formats and other issues, Azernews reports.

It was proposed to invite a delegation of Israeli companies to Azerbaijan for a study tour in order to attract investment in the tourism sector of the Azerbaijan's liberated territories.

Within the framework of the visit, an event dedicated to Azerbaijani tourism was held in Tel Aviv, organized by the State Tourism Agency, the Azerbaijan Tourism Board and Azerbaijan Airlines CJSC (AZAL).

Around 70 travel companies and representatives of the Israeli media, as well as representatives of hotel and travel companies that are members of the Azerbaijan Hotel Association (AOA) and the Azerbaijan Travel Agencies Association (ATAA) attended the event, aimed at showcasing the country's tourism opportunities.

In his speech, Fuad Naghiyev noted that such events, which serve as a platform for strengthening bilateral contacts and business ties, also symbolize the constantly developing friendly relations between the two nations.

He outlined that the expansion of tourism ties with Israel, support for new cooperation initiatives and assistance in mutual promotion of the tourism potential of the two countries are the main goals of the State Tourism Board.

The Azerbaijani Ambassador to Israel Mukhtar Mammadov recalled the official visit of Israeli President Yitzhak Herzog to Azerbaijan last month.

During the visit, President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev and Israeli President Yitzhak Herzog discussed the issues of increasing the level of mutual tourist flow.

Stressing that successful cooperation ties have been established between the two states in a number of areas, the ambassador expressed confidence that the opening of the Azerbaijani embassy in Israel will contribute to the deepening and development of bilateral relations in the tourism field.

AZAL Sales and Partnerships Director Chingiz Mursalov said that starting from June 28, the number of flights from Baku to Tel Aviv will be increased.

He also announced the acquisition of new aircraft for the convenience of flights and the provision of quality passenger service.

These steps are being taken to increase the flow of tourists between Azerbaijan and Israel, to open opportunities for guests to get acquainted with the unique culture, history and sights of the two countries.

Azerbaijan's tourism products and AZAL flight destinations were also presented as part of the event. The meeting participants also got acquainted with the photo exhibition "Azerbaijan through the eyes of Israeli photographers".

In 2022, the number of tourists from Israel to Azerbaijan quadrupled compared to the previous year and amounted to 23,935 people

In the first five months of 2023, the number of Israeli citizens visiting Azerbaijan increased by 70 percent compared to the same period last year and reached 8,611 people.

Currently, direct flights from Tel Aviv to Baku are operated seven times a week.

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