Pak-Turkiye friendship gets a cultural push

ISLAMABAD:

Pakistani writers, intellectuals and artists have formally announced the establishment of "Dost", an organisation aimed at promoting civilisational harmony, cultural diplomacy and people-to-people connections between Pakistan and Turkiye.

The announcement was made during an iftar gathering co-hosted by the Yunus Emre Institute, the Turkish cultural centre in Islamabad.

Minister of State and Special Assistant to the Prime Minister Huzaifa Rehman, who attended the event, noted that while Pakistan and Turkiye already enjoy strong relations at the governmental level, there had long been a need for a structured platform to extend that cooperation to the public. He said Dost was well placed to fulfil this role and assured that the Government of Pakistan would extend its full support to the initiative.

Turkish Ambassador Dr Irfan Neziroglu emphasised that non-governmental organisations play a vital role in fostering cultural ties between nations and expressed hope that Dost would assume a leading role in this effort.