Above: Listen to a version of this story by Jessica Seldner that aired on WUFT-FM.
Some six thousand miles separate the cities of Gainesville, Florida, and Duhok, Kurdistan, Iraq, but the two are ready to reignite a long-distance friendship.
The two cities are participants in a program called Sister Cities International and on Monday morning signed a renewed sister city agreement.
Gainesville Mayor Lauren Poe and Ali Tatar, the governor of Duhok, signed an agreement that establishes mutual friendship and collaboration between the public and private sectors in both cities.
Gainesville and Duhok have been linked since 2006, when previous mayors Pegeen Hanrahan and Tamar Fattah established the sister city partnership.