Flow of tourists from Iran to Russia in 2016 will exceed the record levels of last year, Federal Agency for Tourism (Rosturism) head Oleg Safonov said Tuesday.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) � Rosturism and the Russian Embassy in Iran appealed to the Foreign Ministry with a request to allocate additional personnel to the consulate in Tehran, Safonov said, adding that five new vacancies had been opened at the consulate, but it proved insufficient.

"In February, we opened a Visit Russia office in Iran. In 2015, the number of visas issued in Russia doubled, reaching 49,000. This year, we see even more significant growth," Safonov told RIA Novosti. He said that the growth in the number of tourists showed that Russia was very popular with the Iranians, and on the other hand, it was clear that it was necessary to take certain steps to provide for a new visa principle.

"Therefore, we propose to introduce a mechanism for Iran to provide for group visa-free trips. This work by the Foreign Ministry in cooperation with the Iranian side is underway," the official said. In February, Russia and Iran signed a 2016-2018 joint action program on the implementation of the existing Russian-Iranian intergovernmental agreement on tourism cooperation.

By Sputnik News