Hungarian-Turkish cultural season starts in less than a month

Hungarian-Turkish cultural year will start on Dec 18 to mark the centenary that diplomatic ties were established between the two countries, the minister of culture said on Monday.

János Csák said the programme had been designed to “support decades-long excellent ties by way of culture and to reinforce our cultural presence in the other country”.

Gülsen Karanis, the Turkish ambassador to Hungary, said that the idea for the season was developed jointly by representatives of the two countries.

“We thought it was one of the best ways to highlight our deep-rooted and comprehensive relations, as the cultural years are one of the best examples of cultural diplomacy,” she added.

She recalled that Türkiye had been a republic since 29 October 1923 and Hungary was the first country with which Mustafa Kemal Atatürk signed an international cooperation agreement on 18 December 1923 and one of the first departments of the new university established in Ankara under Atatürk’s leadership was Hungarian Studies.

Hungary was one of the countries that supported the development initiative of young Türkiye, so many Hungarian architects, engineers and professionals came to Turkey at the invitation of Atatürk and left their mark on Turkish buildings and institutions, she added. “The Turks still remember the work of Hungarians with great gratitude,” she stressed.