Turin: His Highness Dr Shaikh Sultan Bin Mohammad Al Qasimi, Supreme Council Member and Ruler of Sharjah met with Chiara Appendino, Mayor of Turin, Italy at the Turin Municipality headquarters on Thursday evening.
The meeting comes in line with Sharjah Cultural Days, which is launched in Turin concurrently with Sharjah’s selection as Guest of Honour at the Turin International Book Fair.
During the meeting, Dr Shaikh Sultan and the Mayor of Turin discussed a number of topics of mutual interest. They also spoke of ways of enhancing cultural cooperation and coordination between the Emirate of Sharjah and the City of Turin to achieve a distinguished cultural exchange.
Dr Shaikh Sultan praised the cultural and historical heritage of Turin, which is reflected in many museums and cultural exhibitions, as well as the distinctive architectural arts of the historical buildings and palaces.
The Mayor of Turin welcomed the Ruler of Sharjah and expressed her pride in this visit, which, she said, reflects the common cultural interests between Sharjah and Turin. She also praised Dr Shaikh Sultan’s role in supporting cultural initiatives and promoting the true concept of civilised and cultural exchange between East and West.
Shaikh Sultan said: “We are delighted to be with you this evening, in the heart of the historic city of Turin, with our sincere appreciation to the mayor of Turin and to all those who contributed to the event.
“We, in Sharjah, firmly believe as you do in Italy, in general and in Turin in particular, that building bridges of arts and culture of all kinds is essential for the development of peaceful and harmonious relations among the peoples of the world.
“We are very pleased that Sharjah is a guest of honour at the prestigious Turin International Book Fair this year, and we will take this opportunity to showcase to the visitors of the fair the exciting cultural development, modern achievements in literature, arts and publishing, not only in our country but also in different parts of the Arab Region. This also reflects our celebration this year of the selection of Sharjah as the World Book Capital 2019 by the Unesco,” added the Sharjah Ruler.
He deeply thanked the mayor and the audience for their hospitality, which matches deep and well-established relations between the UAE and Italy.
The Mayor of Turin presented the Ruler of Sharjah with a commemorative gift on the occasion, which included many rare historical pictures of the city of Turin, taken in different centuries, in recognition of his visit to Turin and his patronage of the launch of Sharjah Cultural Days.
The Sharjah Ruler had earlier arrived at the headquarters of the Turin City Municipality in Italy, where he was welcomed with folk art shows and the Emirati Ayyala dance performed by the Sharjah National Band.
