Many Japanese sakura trees cultivated in Damascus

9 December، 2022 Damascus, SANA- Ministry of Agriculture and Agrarian Reform, in cooperation with Damascus Governorate and the Syrian-Japanese Friendship Association, launched a planting campaign in the gardens surrounding the Umayyad Square in Damascus, during which a number of Japanese sakura trees were planted. Minister of Agriculture and Agrarian Reform, Mohammad Qatana , said that this campaign aims of expanding the planting of forest trees and increasing the area of vegetation cover, pointing out that the sakura tree is an important symbol for the Japanese people, and a number of Damascene jasmine seedlings twill be offering to be planted in the Japanese capital, Tokyo. Qatana referred to the role of the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), which provided the agricultural sector with a lot before the war on Syria, and contributed to boosting relations during the last stage. In turn, Governor of Damascus, Muhammad Tariq Krishati, underlined the importance of this campaign to increase the green spaces of the city and introduce the sakura, which has a particular aesthetic, in the gardens. Head of the Syrian-Japanese Friendship Association referred to the old cooperation between the Association and the Syrian side in several fields, the last of which was transporting this tree and planting it in a number of Syrian cities as an expression of the association’s love for the Syrian people and to convey the beauty of Japanese nature.