Ferdowsi University of Mashhad

On October 31 and November 1, Mr. Artashes Toumanian, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of Armenia to the Islamic Republic of Iran, made a two-day working visit to Razavi Khorasan Province. On the 2nd day of his visit, the Ambassador of Armenia visited Ferdowsi University of Mashhad and discussed the potential collaboration opportunities between Armenian universities and FUM.Then, Mr. Toumanian and his delegation paid a visit to the Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Center at FUM and held discussions with professors and managers of computer, information technology, and e-learning. During this meeting, Dr. Mohammad Kafi, the President of Ferdowsi University of Mashhad pointed to the academic and international status of FUM and said, “Based on the notable capabilities and achievements of ICT center, we have come to the conclusion that information and communication technology would be a fruitful area for further collaborations. Also, Dr. Kafi announced the preparedness of Ferdowsi University of Mashhad for launching Persian e-courses for Armenian students as well as Armenian Language courses for speakers of Persian.The president of FUM said, “We are ready to establish the chair of Armenia at Ferdowsi University of Mashhad and the chair of Iran at prominent Armenian universities. Among the recommendations of Dr. Mohammad Kafi were the offering of Postdoc courses for Armenian universities. Also, collaboration opportunities regarding Oil and Gas, Agriculture, Botany, and Animal Sciences were proposed.Subsequently, Mr. Artashes Toumanian, Ambassador of the Republic of Armenia to the Islamic Republic of Iran, expressed his gratitude for visiting Ferdowsi University of Mashhad and pointed to ‘education’ as the main potential area for further collaborations between Ferdowsi University of Mashhad and Armenian universities. Mentioning the capabilities and potentials of Armenia, Mr. Toumanian said, “Iran is a great country and although we might sometimes overlook this issue, being in the proximity of an ocean like Iran and not collaborating with it does not seem rational”. The Ambassador of Armenia stated that “Armenia has many high-level experts in information and communication technology and we are ready for any type of collaboration in this field”. As his final notes, Mr. Artashes Toumanian said, “On your behalf, I would inform the president of Armenia of the potentials and facilities of Ferdowsi University of Mashhad as well as your preparedness for future collaborations. I hope that at least 10 faculties at Ferdowsi University of Mashhad would start collaborating with Armenian universities. At the end of this meeting, some gifts were exchanged as memorials between the president of Ferdowsi University of Mashhad and the Ambassador of Armenia to the Islamic Republic of Iran.