Azerbaijan, Baku, Dec. 24 / Trend K.Zarbaliyeva /
A media union of Turkic-speaking countries will be created, Azerbaijani Press Council Chairman Aflatun Amashov, who participated in the media forum of Turkic-speaking countries held in Ankara on Dec.21-22, said.
Amashov said a working group will soon meet again in Turkey for this purpose and hold discussions on creating a new structure. The forum also decided to hold similar annual events in one of the Turkic-speaking countries, the Council reported.
Regarding the idea of organizing the forum titled "Media in a globalizing world: opportunities and challenges", he said the initiative was put forward at the joint conference of media representatives of Azerbaijan and Turkey, held in Baku.
"Baku hosted two conferences with the participation of the Azerbaijani and Turkish media outlets' representatives. These conferences debated the issue. The last time it was decided to hold the next meeting in Turkey, and this event was attended by representatives of the Turkic-speaking countries' representatives. The forum's organizers were the Central Press Management, Turkish Publishing and Information Center and the Turkish Foreign Ministry's Strategic Studies Center. These structures used all the capabilities to implement this idea at the highest level and achieved it," he said.
Amashov said the forum was aimed at enhancing the role of media in the democratization process, strengthening the politico-economic and cultural cooperation among the countries and expanding partnerships between the media in a globalized world.
According to Amashov, while such forums are of great importance for Turkey as a country since it has been involved in expanding its geographical access, they also help form professional and personal relationships among journalists from the Turkic-speaking countries.
"All this creates a fertile ground for the formation of a common information space in these countries in the future. I believe that the extension of these relationships contributes to the enhancement of the development and promotion of national and spiritual traditions," Amashov said.
Executive Director of the Azerbaijani Presidential Media Development Support Fund, Vugar Safarli, and Azerbaijani National TV and Radio Broadcasting Council (NTRBC) chairman, Nushiravan Maharramli, also attended the media forum of Turkic-speaking countries