The 28th Moscow International Book Fair (MIBF), where Iran is the guest of honor, provides “a vast opportunity for three centuries of cultural exchange between Iran and Russia,” said Deputy Culture Minister Seyyed Abbas Salehi, on Saturday.
Elaborating on Iran’s programs at the MIBF, he said, “Being the guest of honor enables us to develop closer cooperation with Russia in the print industry.”
Salehi was addressing a press conference at the House of Literati affiliated to Iran’s Book House Institute, which was also attended by managing director of Iran’s Cultural Fairs Institute (ICFI) Amir-Masoud Shahramnia, IBNA reported.
One of the policies adopted by the Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance is cultural diplomacy. “We believe culture exchange can help bring societies closer and book fairs provide an excellent opportunity for cultural diplomacy,” Salehi said.
“Our attendance at the Moscow event is an overture to our forthcoming activities in other international book fairs; we are making efforts to promote our activities into landmark cultural exchanges. A MoU will be signed at the Moscow Fair, and Persian works translated into Russian will also be unveiled,” he said.
Iran has 300 sq m space at the fair where 13 local publishers and organizations will present their latest titles, Shahramnia said.
Cultural and artistic programs are also envisaged on the sidelines of the event including musical performances and plays by theater groups. “Scientific sessions under ‘Literature Bridge of Iran and Russia’ will be held in the presence of eminent authors from the two countries.”
Iran’s Book House Institute will also present the ‘Bibliography of Russian Works in Iran’ at the fair. Prepared by Majid Gholami-Jaliseh, the book includes two sections: the first introduces 212 books translated from Persian into Russian and the other lists 1,692 works rendered from Russian into Persian.
The book includes all the works which have been translated from Persian into Russian and vice versa- from 1978 so far.
A poster ‘Iran, Guest of Honor at Moscow International Book Fair,’ was unveiled.
This year’s MIBF is slated for September 2-6. Cultural officials from Iran will attend the opening ceremony which will include Iranian musical performances.
It is the eighth consecutive year that Iran is participating in the Russian fair. The two sides signed a MoU in 2006 by which each has a free stall in the international book fair of the other country. Russian publishers also take part in the Tehran International Book Fair (TIBF) annually.
MIBF was established in 1977 and is an official member of the International Organization of Book Publishers.
