Mr. Özel, Deputy Secretary General of IMM Held a Meeting with Special Representative of the President of the Russian Federation, Mr. Shvydkoy

Deputy Secretary General of Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality, Mr Oktay Özel, hosted the delegation led by Mr Mikhail Shvydkoy, Special Representative of the President of the Russian Federation for International Cultural Cooperation, accompanied by Mr Alexander Kalachev, Consul General of the Russian Federation in Istanbul, and Ms Ekaterina Pronicheva, Director of the Pushkin State Museum of Fine Arts in Istanbul.

The meeting was also attended by Mr Barbaros Büyüksağnak, Head of the Department of Foreign Relations; Mr Hüseyin Gazi Coşan, Director of Tourism; Mr Ali Şafak Özdemir, Director of Libraries and Museums; and Mr Oytun Askeroğlu, Director of City Theatres.

During the meeting held on 16 February 2026, potential areas of cooperation that could be developed between the Russian Federation and Istanbul were discussed in detail. In this context, particular emphasis was placed on the historical and cultural commonalities shared by Moscow and Istanbul. Opportunities for joint projects and collaboration in the fields of culture, arts, history, and tourism were also evaluated.