Baku Process and 3rd World Forum on Intercultural Dialogue presented at UN Headquarters

New York, January 31, AzerTAc Azerbaijan`s Ministry of Culture and Tourism, Azerbaijan`s Permanent Mission to the United Nations and the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations (UNAOC) have jointly organized the presentation ceremony of Baku Process and the 3rd World Forum on Intercultural Dialogue at the UN Headquarters in New York. Participants in the event included UN officials, representatives of different diplomatic missions and experts. The United Nations High Representative Nassir Abdulaziz Al-Nasser described the ceremony as “a historical event”. He said Baku Process and the World Forum on Intercultural Dialogue serve to preserve peace and cooperation. Mr. Al-Nasser praised the Azerbaijani government`s and President Ilham Aliyev`s attention to intercultural dialogue. Azerbaijani Minister of Culture and Tourism Abulfaz Garayev said “the fact that the presentation ceremony takes place at the UN headquarters testifies to Azerbaijan`s commitment to universal values”. He hailed Baku process and the World Forum on Intercultural Dialogue as “the world's only initiative bringing together major international organizations including UNESCO, the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations (UNAOC), the World Tourism Organization, the Council of Europe and Islamic Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (ISESCO)”. The Minister invited the participants of the event to attend the 3rd World Forum on Intercultural Dialogue due to take place in Baku on May 18-19. UNESCO Permanent Representative to UN Moufida Goucha said UNESCO attaches a particular importance to promoting peace and dialogue. She congratulated the Azerbaijani delegation on behalf of UNESCO Director General Irina Bokova. UNWTO Permanent Representative to UN Rafiuddin Ahmed read out a congratulatory message of Secretary-General of the World Tourism Organization Taleb Rifai. Permanent Representative of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation to UN Ufuk Geksen read out a message of greetings of ISESCO Director General Abdulaziz Othman Altwaijri. The ceremony featured demonstration of a film highlighting President Ilham Aliyev`s initiative to found Baku Process and the World Forum on Intercultural Dialogue. The participants of the event were presented books on Azerbaijan`s cultural and tourism potential. The World Forum on Intercultural Dialogue was initiated in 2008. Two previous editions were held in 2011 and in 2013. It has become a global platform for exchange and discussion on major contemporary challenges pertaining to intercultural dialogue and the sharing of related universal values, which have become pressing issues to address in our globalized and more and more diverse societies. This open forum aims to reaffirm the imperative need to consolidate and intensify dialogue among peoples from different cultures, religions or beliefs, in order to create, at the national, regional and global levels, an environment conducive to respect for cultural diversity, human rights and mutual understanding.