President of the Republic of Tatarstan Rustam Minnikhanov, as part of a working trip to Bosnia and Herzegovina, visited the Gazi Khusrev-bega mosque, where he met with the imam of Sarajevo and the main imam of the mosque, Mensur Malkich. At the meeting, he was accompanied by the Mufti of Tatarstan Kamil Samigullin.

According to the results of the 2013 census, 3.83 million people live in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Bosniaks (Bosnian Muslims) make up half of the ethnic composition of the population. Islam in the country is professed by 45% of believers.

The Gazi Khusrev Bega Mosque is the most significant architectural monument of the Ottoman period in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The first mosque in the world to be supplied with electricity.

Rustam Minnikhanov thanked the imam for the reception and congratulated him on the beginning of the holy month of Ramadan. During the conversation, the President of the Republic invited Mensur Malkich to the celebration of the 1100th anniversary of the adoption of Islam by the Volga Bulgaria, which will be held in Tatarstan next year.

Rustam Minnikhanov also said that Russian President Vladimir Putin pays great attention to the issues of building relationships with the Islamic world. For this, the Russia-Islamic World Strategic Vision Group has been created. Rustam Minnikhanov noted that within the framework of official meetings he will appeal to the leadership of Bosnia and Herzegovina to include their representative in the Group.