The opening of the Azerbaijani Cultural Center has been held in Vienna.
The ceremony was attended by President Ilham Aliyev and his wife Mehriban Aliyeva.
The head of state opened the Center.
Addressing the ceremony, President Ilham Aliyev said:
- Dear ladies and gentlemen!
Distinguished friends!
It is a great day today! The official visit of the President of Azerbaijan to Austria is taking place. During the visit, we are opening the Azerbaijani Cultural Center in Vienna together. This is a landmark event in the history of our relations, because the opening of a cultural center in the capital of the world culture is actually very important to us.
My colleague Mr. President and I have conducted very active negotiations and exchanged views earlier this morning. We have had discussions regarding the economic, political, educational, tourism and cultural spheres, and have reached mutual understanding on how to develop the relations between Azerbaijan and Austria. We are real partners and friends.
Today we have signed the political declaration on friendship and partnership. The name of the declaration shows how we approach our bilateral relations. There are active business communities in our countries and they are engaged in a very fruitful cooperation.
Today, President Fischer and I have also taken part in a business forum. We have further inspired business groups to get closer, operate effectively and implement more projects. Along with political connections, effective economic cooperation and the hard work forthcoming in the future, we are also pleased to see very important cultural aspects between our two countries.
Last night, as soon as our delegation arrived in Vienna, we visited the statue of our great composer Uzeyir Hajibayli which was erected in 2006.
I remembered the ceremony to unveil the statue of great Austrian composer Mozart in one of the central parks in Baku, which President Fischer and I attended together two years ago. Now we are gathered for the opening of the Azerbaijani Cultural Center.
In our discussions today we were pleased to note that we share not only infrastructure, energy and construction projects. As I have said several times today, the symbol of Azerbaijan and Baku, the Maiden Tower, is being restored by Austrian specialists. This attests to the level of mutual trust, mutual respect and active cooperation between us.
I am confident that this center, which is the second Azerbaijani cultural center to be opened in Europe in the years of our independence, will first of all introduce Azerbaijani culture to the Austrians. At the same time, it will be a place for meetings between intellectuals, politicians and public figures.
It will be a kind of the Azerbaijan House in the center of Vienna, in this beautiful city, which in itself is a world heritage.
Azerbaijan is a relatively young independent nation. We have been an independent state for only 21 years. But we have a great history, culture, traditions, literature, music, carpets, etc. In fact, the modern Carpet Museum in Baku is also being built by Austrian companies. I am very glad to see everyone here. I see a lot of friends here, as well as representatives of the Azerbaijani community of Austria. I do hope that this cultural center is always full of people, friends, and the cultural aspect of our relations will further strengthen the close friendship and partnership between our two countries and peoples.
I congratulate all of you on this momentous event in the history of our relations and wish you all the best for the future. Thank you.
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Stressing that the two countries have established friendly relations, Second President of the National Council Fritz Neugebauer said:
- Ladies and gentlemen!
I am honored to participate in the opening of the Azerbaijani Cultural Center in Vienna.
Our two countries have warm and friendly relations. Clear evidence of that is the visit of President Heinz Fischer to Baku in October 2011, my visit to Baku together with my friends from the Austrian parliament in March of this year, when I was fortunate enough to meet with the President, and Your Excellency’s current visit to Vienna.
I am convinced that political and business ties are very important. But the most important thing is the dialogue in the field of culture. Culture brings people together, helps them to understand each other and opens up new horizons.
Your country and the UN alliance of civilizations are partners in conducting the World Forum on Intercultural Dialogue in Baku two weeks later, in late May and early June. The forum will focus on specific initiatives that promote cultural diversity and coexistence. Azerbaijan is quite active in the field of culture in Vienna.
The exhibition "The flight to Baku" will be opened in Vienna for the first time tomorrow. This building is located in the center of Vienna. The new cultural center will actively participate in various cultural activities, become a new forum of exchange, and encourage dialogue and exchange in the field of culture. Thank you very much.
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During meetings with the President on the sidelines of the ceremony, representatives of the Austrian public, members of Azerbaijani Diaspora organizations and Azerbaijani students noted that the establishment of this center of culture was very important for Azerbaijan. They stressed the importance of opening such centers of culture for conducting Diaspora policies.
The Azerbaijani Cultural Center in Vienna has been established in accordance with a Decree of President Ilham Aliyev dated 16 November 2012 to promote Azerbaijani culture in Austria. To provide the Austrian people with the opportunity to become better acquainted with Azerbaijan, there are plans to conduct various activities promoting the rich culture, arts and tourism opportunities of the country. The center will also operate Azerbaijani language courses. Anyone can use the services of a rich library and a multimedia library, which contains works of Azerbaijani authors Nizami, Nasimi, Mohammad Fizuli and other classics, as well as prominent contemporary writers and poets. Participants of music evenings to be held at the Centre on a regular basis will, along with Azerbaijani folk music, have the opportunity to listen to the works of Uzeyir Hajibayli, Gara Garayev, Fikrat Amirov, Arif Malikov and other famous composers, and enjoy the Azerbaijani mugam. During the exhibitions to be organized at the culture center, art lovers will be able to see the most interesting examples of Azerbaijani painting, sculpture and folk arts. One of the main objectives of the Center is to develop cooperation with culture, tourism and media institutions of Austria, establish close ties with the cultural centers of other countries already operating in this country, and contribute to intercultural dialogue.
The Cultural Center set up in Vienna is yet another important step undertaken by the First Lady of Azerbaijan, President of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation Mrs. Mehriban Aliyeva to promote the country abroad.
The new cultural center opens up opportunities for stepping up work in this area, manage it from a single point and ensure a more efficient operation.
We recall that the first Azerbaijani cultural center abroad was opened in Paris with the participation of President Ilham Aliyev in September last year.
President Ilham Aliyev and his wife Mehriban Aliyeva left notes in the book of honorary guests of the Azerbaijan cultural center in Vienna.
In conclusion, a photo was taken as a souvenir.
