The official opening ceremony of the House of Azerbaijan was held in Salzburg, Austria on September 21.

The opening ceremony was attended by the State Committee for Work with the Diaspora, the Azerbaijani Embassy in Austria, the Honorary Consulate of Azerbaijan in Salzburg, the leadership and staff of the Azerbaijani Cultural Center, our compatriots living in Austria and representatives of the local community.

The event was opened by Azerbaijani Ambassador to Austria Rovshan Sadigbeyli. In his speech, he spoke about the situation of the Azerbaijani community in Austria, the organization of diaspora activities and the work done, noting that one of the main activities of the diaspora is to promote Azerbaijani culture to the local community. Speaking about the positive development of Azerbaijani-Austrian bilateral relations, the ambassador praised the activities of the Azerbaijani Cultural Center in Vienna in the development of cultural ties. He expressed hope that the House of Azerbaijan in Salzburg would give impetus to the development of relations between the two countries.

Honorary Consul of Azerbaijan in Salzburg, Tyrol and Forarlberg Michael Heinritz expressed satisfaction with the opening of the House of Azerbaijan in Salzburg, which has the status of the unofficial capital of Austria. He said that in addition to the close gathering of members of the diaspora in this area, it will be possible to organize various cultural events and a weekend school.

Chairman of the State Committee for Work with the Diaspora Fuad Muradov spoke about Azerbaijani houses established abroad and their activities. It was noted that despite the restrictions associated with the coronavirus pandemic, it was possible to organize the successful operation of Azerbaijani homes and expand their ranks. Noting that the House of Azerbaijan opened in Salzburg today is the 15th such center, Muradov said that by 2024 their number is expected to increase to 26.

The chairman of the committee said that the Azerbaijan House is, first of all, a place where members of the Azerbaijani community come together, and they will be able to organize their diaspora activities more effectively there. Muradov also praised the work of coordination councils abroad and Azerbaijani houses during the pandemic, Tovuz events and the 44-day war, noting that a new stage in the activities of our compatriots in the diaspora has already begun and great goals lie ahead. Thanks to the reforms implemented by the Azerbaijani state, our diaspora is also achieving new successes. The Azerbaijani community in Austria has a lot of work to do in this direction, and the Azerbaijani houses created will serve as a place for community members to come together and effectively organize their activities from a single center.

Then, videos on the activities of the State Committee for Work with the Diaspora and the visit of Diaspora representatives to Shusha were shown.

Chairman of the Austrian Society of Azerbaijanis Farid Azizov made a report, and a video was shown reflecting the activities of the organization since its inception.

In the artistic part of the opening ceremony, honored artists – tar player Sahib Pashazade and drummer Kamran Karimov performed a solo concert program. The program includes folk songs, dances and mugam compositions.

Source: Azerbaijan State News Agency