The President of the Republic of  Tatarstan Rustam Minnikhanov met with compatriots, living in the United States and Canada, in Boston.

Remind, the President of  Tatarstan is in Boston on a working visit (15-17 September 2013).

The meeting with Rustam Minnikhanov was attended by undergraduate and graduate students, studying in various U.S. universities, activists of Tatar communities of major cities in North America, compatriots, maintaining bonds with a native land.

It’s nice that far from their historic homeland the Tatars were able to find each other, have banded together and are making efforts to preserve the traditions, customs, native language and culture of their people, said Rustam Minnikhanov, welcoming the participants.

Tatarstan President said the United States and Canada are important economic and business partners of the Republic of Tatarstan, and representatives of the Tatar community – good helpers for the developing cooperation with these countries.

He also said that the republic has a trade representatives in the United States , and one of its objectives – ensuring closer ties with the Republic of  Tatarstan, interaction with compatriots.

Minnikhanov briefed the participants of the meeting about the projects that are implemented in Tatarstan and are designed , first and foremost, to help the Tatars living abroad, to preserve their traditions and culture, to feel a close connection with a small motherland. This is a project of satellite television , “TNV -Planet”, a program on-line study of the Tatar language on the Internet “Ana Tele” and others.

In addition, the Tatar national holiday Sabantui, in recent years, has become not only an all-Russian festive, but also the world one – it is celebrated in many regions of Russia and abroad, recalled Minnikhanov.

Countrymen , having come to the meeting from Canada, reported that in Montreal and Toronto have Tatar society that unites Tatars , allow them to retain their identity , do not forget the national cuisine , language. Since 2004 in Canada (Toronto) Sabantui is being celebrated, this year it has been held for the tenth time , a greeting to Canadian Tatars on the occasion “celebration of the plow” was sent by the President of Tatarstan Rustam Minnikhanov.

During the meeting, Rustam Minnikhanov showed a movie that was filmed during the celebration of Sabantui 2013.

Compatriots also said that in 2012 they came to Kazan to take part in the fifth anniversary convention of the World Congress of Tatars (WCT). In spring of 2014, they plan to participate in World Congress of Russian young compatriots (to be held in Kazan).

Concert was organized for Minnikhanov and his party organized a concert, Tatars – the famous compatriots sang songs in native language, showed dances , among other performers the was an amateur ensemble “Bairam”.

From the Tatars, living in North America, there were proposals to liaise more closely with the Republic of  Tatarstan, arrange shipments of Tatar products to the U.S.A., work more closely with universities in the Republic of  Tatarstan and generally engage more in science and education.

Minnikhanov, in particular, proposed to organize training of students in schools of Tatarstan, as well as collaborate with Kazan (Volga) Federal University (KFU).

The compatriots also offered Rustam Minnikhanov to organize such a meeting in New York, as they say, if  Boston is science and education, New York – is business, finance , and investments.

For record:

Tatars in the United States live in New York, in the north-east of the state of New Jersey, Connecticut, Washington, California, in San Francisco Bay, in Virginia, Pennsylvania, Oklahoma. In Brooklyn, few Bashkir families live who in the U.S.A. have assimilated with Kazan Tatars. Many members of Polish- Lithuanian Tatars and Crimean Tatars also maintain very close communication with the Kazan Tatars.

Constant communication is maintained between American Tatars and executive committee of the World Congress of  Tatars. The representatives of the Tatar Diaspora participated in a meeting of the Congress of the World Congress of  Tatars in the World Forum of Tatar youth and in celebrating 1000th anniversary of Kazan.

From June 22 to 27, 2011, with support of the World Congress of  Tatars and the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of  Tatarstan, a visit of  Tatarstan delegation to the United States was arranged. In New York, a meeting was held with leaders of associations and Tatars from all states of the U.S.A. where it was decided to create the Assembly of the Tatars of the American continents, which officially was registered in autumn of 2012 (President of the Association – Masguda Shamsutdinova).

Author: RT President Press – service, Yelena Britvina