Azernews.Az

By Laman Ismayilova

Representatives of the Baku-based Turkic Culture and Heritage Foundation and Kazakh political scientists have discussed ways of expanding mutual cooperation in the Azerbaijani capital.

Speaking about new projects, President of the Turkic Culture and Heritage Foundation Gunay Efendiyeva stressed that the Foundation joined several events celebrated in Kazakhstan, Azertag reported.

As part of the celebration, the Turkic Culture and Heritage Foundation will publish the book "Time and Thoughts" timed to the 80th anniversary of the first President of Kazakhstan Nursultan Nazarbayev.

The publication highlights the views of the former Kazakh president expressed by him at various conferences as well as articles and books published in different years.

Another book is dedicated to the 175th anniversary of the great Kazakh writer Abai Kunanbayev.

The book is a valuable resource dedicated to the author's work. It will be published in Azerbaijani.

The presentation of the books will also take place in Kazakhstan.

Moreover, postage stamps have been issued in Spain to honour the memory of eminent Kazakh poet Abay Kunanbayev and the great national composer Uzeyir Hajibeyli, who left their mark in the Turkic culture.

Glorious victory

Touching upon the Karabakh, Gunay Efendiyeva called the liberation of the ancient lands of Azerbaijan a glorious victory.

The president of the Turkic Culture and Heritage Foundation praised the invincible will of President Ilham Aliyev and the inexhaustible strength of the Azerbaijani Army.

Gunay Efendiyeva also expressed concern over the current deplorable state of Azerbaijan's cultural heritage on the territories that were occupied by Armenia. She called the destruction and insult of historical, religious monuments and architectural damage as a material and moral damage not only to Azerbaijan but to the Turkic world as a whole.

The Foundation has also conducted various studies and published books in this regard.

He noted that one of such publications is called "International agreements on the South Caucasus and resettlement of Armenians in the 19th-20th centuries" by Namig Aliyev, published in Russian under the auspices of the Foundation.

Moreover, a major project entitled "Damage to historical and cultural monuments in the occupied territories of Azerbaijan" has been co-organized by the Foundation in partnership with the Institute of Law and Human Rights and Azerbaijan's National Commission for UNESCO.

As part of the project, the book of the same name and "Catalogue of historical and architectural monuments in the occupied territories of Nagorno-Karabakh of Azerbaijan" was published in Azerbaijani, Russian, English and French.

Speaking at the event, Doctor of Law, Professor Namig Aliyev touched upon the events in Nagorno-Karabakh. He gave a historical and legal analysis of the facts about the Nagorno-Karabakh lands occupied by Armenia for about 30 years.

He said that the research in his book helps better understand the roots of the events around Karabakh, reconsider the general picture of the policy of resettlement of Armenians in the historical lands of Azerbaijan.

The representative of the International Turkish Academy Fuzuli Majid spoke about the purpose of his visit.

"Our delegation visited different regions of Azerbaijan, met with the families of martyrs and filmed," he said.

Further Azerbaijani-Kazakh cooperation

The head of the news portal Ea-news.kz Nurgali Jusipbay said that Kazakhstanis highly appreciate work done by the Turkic Culture and Heritage Foundation.

Political scientist Askhad Hasangali praised Azerbaijan's victory. He emphasized that Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan are united by a common language and culture. Hasangali expressed his confidence that the cooperation with the Turkic Culture and Heritage Foundation will continue in future.

Film director Almas Altay spoke about his filming of historical monuments in Kazakhstan. He said that the Oghuz Turks, one of the ancient Turkic tribes, once played an invaluable role in the construction of the Great Wall of China. They lived in western Kazakhstan for about 200 years and left a rich legacy.

"As a continuation of this project, we want to shoot historical monuments in Azerbaijan," he added.

At the end, the parties stressed the importance of mutual cooperation and spoke about the projects to be implemented and their future prospects.

Initiated in 2012, the Turkic Culture and Heritage Foundation focuses on preservation of the Turkic heritage in member countries as well as conducting projects in collaboration with partners in third countries.

The Foundation provides assistance in the protection, study and promotion of Turkic culture and heritage through supporting and funding various activities, projects and programs. It carries out its activities in cooperation with TURKSOY and the Turkic Academy.

The Cooperation Council of the Turkic Speaking States (CCTSS) is an intergovernmental organization, which aims at promoting comprehensive cooperation among Turkic speaking states.

The organization was established by the Nakhchivan Agreement, which was signed at the Turkic Summit in 2009.

In order to fulfil the objectives and tasks of the CCTSS, the organization has been divided into the following structures: Council of Heads of States; Council of Foreign Ministers, Senior Officials Committee, Council of Elders, Secretariat, Coordination Committee, Representation Office of the Turkic Council in Budapest.

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Laman Ismayilova is AzerNews’ staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @Lamiva993

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