Today in Kirov, the acting Chairman of the State Council of Tatarstan, Marat Akhmetov, met with representatives of the region’s Tatar community. The meeting took place at the Legislative Assembly of Kirov Oblast.

Akhmetov conveyed greetings from the Rais (Head) of Tatarstan, Rustam Minnikhanov, and emphasized that the republic always supports Tatars living outside its borders. Discussions focused on preserving the language, culture, and traditions, as well as developing education in the Tatar language. In particular, it was proposed to consider opening Tatar-language classes and conducting extracurricular activities in the native language, following Tatarstan’s example.

More than 26,000 Tatars live in Kirov Oblast. Schools offering Tatar language studies are operating, the newspaper “Duslyk” (Friendship) is published, and national cultural centers, ensembles, and mosques are active. Special attention was paid to the development of children’s and adult education in the Tatar language — Marat Akhmetov presented sets of books for children and adults to the Tatar community activists.

At the conclusion of the meeting, both sides emphasized the importance of joint projects for strengthening interethnic unity and developing Tatar culture in the region.