Bishkek, Jan. 13, 2026. /Kabar/. The Turkic Week in Vienna officially commenced on 12 January 2026 with the opening ceremony of the photo exhibition entitled “Turkic World on the Silk Road”, held at the Rotunda of the United Nations Office at Vienna (VIC).
The opening ceremony featured addresses by Bo Mathiasen, Officer-in-Charge of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) and Director of the Division for Operations, as host of the event; Ambassador Kubanychbek Omuraliev, Secretary General of the Organization of Turkic States; Samir Sharifov, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Azerbaijan representing Azerbaijan’s Chairmanship of the OTS; Fatou Haidara, Deputy Director General of the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO); and Driss El Hadani, Deputy Director of the United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs (UNOOSA).
In his address, the Secretary General emphasized that the Silk Road represents a shared historical and civilizational space that connected cultures, economies, and societies across Eurasia. He highlighted that today’s OTS initiatives in connectivity, transport, trade facilitation, and people-to-people ties reflect a modern continuation of this legacy.
The exhibition, jointly organized by the OTS Secretariat and the Turkic Academy, presents a visual narrative of the cultural heritage, historical depth, and geographic continuity of the Turkic World along the Silk Road. The opening ceremony was followed by a reception hosted by the Embassy of the Republic of Azerbaijan.