ISLAMABAD, APR 06 (DNA) – Pakistan’s ministry for foreign affairs on Thursday hosted an event for the first time to celebrate the Norouz Festival with active participation of the embassies of Central Asia states including Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan.

Foreign Minister of Pakistan Khawaja Muhammad Asif was the chief guest on the occasion .

The countries of the ECO region including Iran , Pakistan, Turkey, Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan set up stalls displaying different cultural items and traditional cuisine.

The visitors took special interest in the Uzbek, Tajik and Azerbaijan stall and tasted the traditional food. The Iranian handicrafts were also displayed at the stall which attracted the people.

The event also provided an opportunity to all the ECO countries to further boost their ties by knowing each other’s culture in a better way.

Norouz, the traditional festival of spring is celebrated by millions of people across the globe including in Pakistan.

It usually falls on March 21 or the previous or following day, depending on where it is observed.