China to host '2013 year of Turkish culture'

China will celebrate 2013 as "The Year of Turkish Culture" as part of the 42th anniversary of the establishment of bilateral diplomatic ties. Beijing will host the premiere of "The Year of Turkish Culture in China" on March 21, in which two countries' culture ministers will participate. Turkish officials introduced, at a press conference held at Chinese Ministry of Culture in Beijing, the all-year-round organizations to be held in 12 Chinese provinces, including cultural activities, exhibitions, programmes and some show groups to perform. Murat Salim Esenli, Turkish Ambassador in Beijing, underlined the frequency of bilateral high profile visits and their contribution to bilateral relations, recalling the two countries' relations had deep roots in history. Esenli expressed Turkey's pleasure to have hosted 120 thousand Chinese last year in Turkey and the Chinese interest thanks to the celebrations of "The Year of Chinese Culture in Turkey." "There's been no wider-scale promotion of Turkey before in the history of 42-year-old relations of Turkey and People's Republic of China," Esenli said. As the 42th anniversary of the establishment of bilateral diplomatic ties, "2013 Year of Turkish Culture in China" will include exhibitions of Chinese porcelains in Turkey, concerts of Turkish Presidential Sypmphony and performances of Turkish opera singers and ballet dancers all across China. - Turkish Airlines to fly "the year of culture" - Turkish Airlines' Manager in Beijing, Veysel Tas, reminding their sponsorhip to Chinese Ministry of Culture last year for "The Year of Chinese Culture in Turkey," said they will be the sponsor to Turkish Ministry of Culture this year. Referring Turkish Airlines' as "a modern Silk Road," Tas stated that they will increase the number of reciprocal flights from 24 to 28 and offer discount tickets and cargo discount for passengers flying between Turkey and China, as part of the promotion efforts of Turkish Ministry of Culture. "Turkish Airlines is always ready to do its part to enable Turkey to get a larger share of the cake, considering the number of Chinese tourists, about 80 million, travelling in 2012," said Tas.