Diplomat hopes Italy would serves as special guest at TIBF 2016

1394/02/18-10:33

Italian ambassador in Tehran, Mauro Conchatori has expressed hope his country would be invited as special guest to the next edition of Tehran International Book Fair (TIBF) set for May 2016.

The senior diplomat made the remarks in a meeting with President of the 28th edition of the cultural event, Sayyed Abbas Salehi, adding the invite would open a new window to more cultural exchanges between the two countries, especially in publication.

The Italian ambassador said the two countries have enjoyed deep, friendly historical relations, adding that the historical exchanges between the two nations were largely cultural.

The Italian diplomat opined that nations would enjoy more sustainable relations if they start to build bilateral ties through cultural exchanges.

In another regard, the Italian ambassador touched on the earlier signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between the two countries on cultural exchanges, noting that the five-page document calls for translation of Iranian publications into Italian language, among others.

Conchatori termed his inspection of the cultural event a major gain for the Italian nation and government, expressing the hope his country would produce a more effective presence at TIBF 2016 than other EU nations.

For his part, Salehi described the TIBF event as a socio-cultural festival for the Iranian nation with millions of Iranians planning to join the annual event every year.

The TIBF president said there are up to 160 thousand foreign titles on display in the international event, adding that the foreign titles provide a good opportunity for Iran to engage with other countries.

Salehi suggested it was a good chance for Italy to offer its titles to the Iranian audience instead of waiting for them to find the chance to visit Italy and look for publications on their fields of interest