Tatarstan in Paris

The visit of Tatarstan President Mintimer Shaimiev to France is continuing. On June 6, Tatarstan leader held several meetings devoted to the forthcoming celebration of the 1000-th anniversary of Kazan.

President Shaimiev met UNESCO Director General Koitiro Matsuuro, RF representative to UNESCO Yevgeny Sidorov, Russian Ambassador in France Nikolai Afanasyevsky.

It was said that the Republic of Tatarstan boasts a great number of historic and architectural landmarks and memorials not only of the republican and All-Russian, but of international value. Combination of at least three types of cultural influences (Turkic, Finnish-Ugric and Slavonic-Russian), two religions (Islam and Christianity) account for unique features of the region, peculiar culture and historic values. On November 30, 2000, the session of UNESCO inter-governmental committee included the historic and architectural complex of the Kazan Kremlin in the list of UNESCO World Heritage. The date of Kazan's 1000-th anniversary belongs to the UNESCO Memorial Calendar.

The meetings also tackled the problem of holding Chaliapin Opera Festival and Nuriyev Ballet Festival under the aegis of UNESCO. The parties agreed to organize an international conference "Great Volga Path" in Kazan in 2001. For the great contribution in preservation of cultural and historic values, Koitiro Matsuuro awarded Mintimer Shaimiev with a silver Avitsenna medal.

The same day, the opening of Tatartstan's Days and concert of Tatarstan artists were held in the UNESCO headquarter in Paris.