Iran reacts to Erdogan’s Nowruz message

TABNAK Mar. 25 - Iran says remarks by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan marking the Nowruz celebrations show the depth of the rich message of the festivity.

News ID: 6166

Date: 25 March 2025 - 01:49

“Turkish President Erdogan’s statements that Nowruz is also a day of celebration for Turkic-speaking people and helps [promote] solidarity reflect the depth and richness of the message of Nowruz,” Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei said in a post on his X account on Monday.

Addressing a Nowruz Day event, Erdogan said, “Nowruz is not a festival of any particular ethnic group, but of our entire nation and our entire geography, including Alevis, Sunnis, Turks, and Kurds. Nowruz is also the most important symbol of our shared culture, common history, and the unity of our destiny and hearts.”

He expressed hope that the March 21 Nowruz Day will become a day of collective commemoration and celebration that cements unity and solidarity in the Turkic world.

Baghaei said Iranians have for a long time been celebrating Nowruz, which has ancient roots in the Iranian civilization.

“Throughout history, the auspicious festival [of Nowruz] has spread among various nations and it is currently served as a shared cultural heritage among many nations and symbolizes friendship, peace and solidarity,” the Iranian official added.

“We are proud that Iranian Nowruz, thanks to its noble human and cultural message, is now celebrated by many nations and ethnic groups, including Turks, Arabs, Kurds, Baluchs, Turkmens, Uzbeks, and others,” he wrote.

He said the festival strengthens human, cultural and social bonds among peoples across a vast region from East to West Asia and beyond.

Baghaei also cited UN Secretary General António Guterres, who said on the International Day of Nowruz, “In our world of conflict, division and strife, the spirit of Nowruz is a precious gift.”