A city from Iran to be the Special Guest City of the Istanbul International Book Fair

In his visit to the Tehran International Book Fair, the Turkish Ambassador in Iran said, “We have had negotiations to invite a city from Iran as the Special Guest City of the Istanbul International Book Fair. Our preference in this regard is Tabriz and if everything goes well, we will have this city as our Special Guest City in the Istanbul International Book Fair, AVA Diplomatic reports.

A city from Iran is going to be the Special Guest City of the Istanbul International Book Fair. In his visit to the TIBF, Reza Hakan Tekin said, “During three years of my presence in Iran, the TIBF has provided the most pleasant memories for me. I personally am very interested in books and visiting a large book fair of such quality has always made me happy.”

Appreciating the Iranian authorities for choosing Istanbul as the Special City Guest, he said, “We have also started negotiations to invite a city from Iran as the Special Guest City of the Istanbul International Book Fair.

Emphasizing on the fact that Istanbul is one of the most important cultural cities in the world, Hakan added, “The history, architecture, and culture of Istanbul have an international reputation as it is among the very few cities of the world which does not need any introduction. However, I am pleased that we are given the very opportunity to remind the beauties of Turkey to the Iranian book lovers.”

Expressing his satisfaction regarding the interest that Iranian show for the Turkish culture and literature, the Turkish ambassador said, “This interest is mutual. As you know, Orhan Pamuk, one of the most popular contemporary Turkish writers and Nobel winner, in his last novel ‘The Red-Haired Woman’ has related the story of Rustam and Sohrab in a modern story. This very example shows the influence of the Persian literature on Turkey.”

Emphasizing on the necessity of increasing the cultural interactions between the two countries, Hakan Tekin added, “Our cultural activities shall not be limited to the book fair and we shall do our best to invite more Turkish writers, poets and scholars to Iran so that the relationships between the cultural figures of the countries are reinforced. Personally, I am attempting to invite Orhan Pamuk since I know this writer has lots of audiences in Iran and his presence will be a new step in developing the cultural relationships between the two countries.”