Cooperation in culture seen as essential to strengthening of CIS
Cooperation in culture is essential to the strengthening of the CIS, Belarusian Prime Minister Roman Golovchenko said at a meeting of the CIS Heads of Government Council in Moscow on 18 December, BelTA has learned.
"For our countries, cooperation in culture is essential to strengthening friendship, good-neighborly and partnership relations," Roman Golovchenko said.
He stated that a fairly harmonious system of cultural and humanitarian cooperation has been built in the CIS and urged to tap into its opportunities to the maximum. One of the effective forms of cooperation is the exchanging of the Days of Culture. This year, Belarus hosted the Days of Culture of Uzbekistan and the Russian Federation. The Days of Belarusian Culture were held in Kyrgyzstan. In 2024, we will conduct the Days of Culture of Belarus in Azerbaijan and Azerbaijan in Belarus and the Days of Culture of Armenia and Kyrgyzstan in Belarus," the prime minister said.
According to him, an important thing is mutual participation in festival events held in the CIS countries. "For example, the International Festival of Arts Slavianski Bazaar in Vitebsk has long become a traditional platform for artists from the CIS countries," the prime minister stated. He added that films from the CIS countries are featured in the competitive and non-competitive programs of the Listapad Film Festival from year to year.
"Another very fruitful area of joint work is tours exchange. Fot example, in October 2022, the Bolshoi Theater of Belarus toured Moscow. The Bolshoi Theater of Russia came to Minsk on a return tour in November 2023. In addition, this year the Bolshoi Theater of Belarus, the legendary Pesnyary and other major groups visited more than 50 Russian cities," the prime minister said.
Following the meeting, the prime ministers are set to sign a joint statement on the prospects for cultural and humanitarian cooperation. Roman Golovchenko stressed that Belarus fully supports the proposed draft statement of the heads of government of the CIS member states.