A three-day festival kicked off Friday in Moscow with a huge turnout from Russians eager to learn more about Turkey and its culture. The Turkey Festival, sponsored by the Turkish Hoteliers Federation and the Culture and Tourism Ministry was inaugurated by Culture and Tourism Minister Mehmet Ersoy, in Moscow's Krasnaya Presnya Park.
Last year, more than 150,000 people visited the festival, which highlights Turkish culture and promotes tourist attractions. Turkish and Russian singers will perform at concerts while municipalities from Turkey's Mediterranean region, a popular destination for Russian tourists, will promote their cities and towns with stalls set up at the event. A mehter, or Ottoman military band, will also perform at the event, while a fashion show where models wear Ottoman-era dresses will also be held on the sidelines of the festival. Visitors will also have a chance to sample Turkish cuisine.
Turkish Ambassador to Moscow Hüseyin Diriöz said the event is "the most comprehensive" of similar events put on by Turkey in Russia. "These events aim to bring Turkish and Russian people, who share a deep-rooted relationship based on their history, closer. They contribute significantly to political and economic relations which are already at a very good level," he said at a press conference to promote the festival.
Turkey seeks to strengthen its relations with Russia on tourism and culture. Both countries will mark 2019 as the Year of Culture and Tourism between the two countries. Turkey expects to host 6 million tourists from Russia this year, exceeding last year's 4.7 million visitors. Additionally, Turkey ranked 29th on a list of countries in terms of the number of tourists visiting Russia last year, as 80,000 Turkish citizens visited the country, an increase of 103 percent compared to 2016.
