The Speaker of the Iranian Parliament Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf Saturday night congratulated his counterparts in Tajikistan, Azerbaijan, Turkey, Iraq, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, and Pakistan in a message on the ancient holiday of Nowruz.

Yesterday, Sunday, at 19:03:26, was the beginning of the year 1401 AH in Iran.
 
Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf, Speaker of the Iranian Parliament, in his message to the Speakers of the Parliaments of the Nowruz Civilization, while congratulating the solar New Year, expressed hope that the New Year will be a year full of peace, tranquility, and lasting security for all nations.
 
In this message, Qalibaf also said that the world today more than ever needs dialogue, cooperation between nations and the elites of different societies, and said: Strengthening relations between parliaments as representatives of nations plays an important role in creating peace.
 
On February 23, 2010, at the suggestion of the Islamic Republic of Iran and several countries that share this holiday, the United Nations designated March 21 as "International Nowruz Day" each year and called on countries to celebrate and promote the occasion by holding various ceremonies.
 
Nowruz marks the first day of spring and is celebrated on the day of the astronomical vernal equinox, which usually occurs on March 21. It is celebrated as the beginning of the new year by more than 300 million people worldwide and has been celebrated for over 3,000 years in Iran, the Balkans, the Black Sea Basin, the Caucasus, Central Asia, the Middle East, and other regions.


Nowruz plays a significant role in strengthening the ties among peoples based on mutual respect and the ideals of peace and good neighborliness. Its traditions and rituals reflect the cultural and ancient customs of the civilizations of the East and West, which influenced those civilizations through the interchange of human values.
 
Celebrating Nowruz means the affirmation of life in harmony with nature, awareness of the inseparable link between constructive labor and natural cycles of renewal, and a solicitous and respectful attitude towards natural sources of life.