North Macedonia Showcases Cultural Heritage at Council of Europe Forum

Amid global changes and challenges, culture remains the one thing that connects us, Minister of Culture and Tourism Zoran Ljutkov said in an opening address at the Forum on Cultural Routes of the Council of Europe in Function of the Development of Cultural Tourism, taking place Wednesday in Skopje, CE Report quotes MIA.

“We’re not here today to talk about culture, we are here today to recognize its real power in the modern society. Cultural routes are not only tourist lanes. They are roads of values, dialogue, shared heritage and European union. Amid global changes and challenges, culture remains the one thing that connects us. And cultural routes are a living proof – they tell stories of the past all the while calling on us to act today for better and more inclusive future,” stressed the Minister.

With over 40 certified routes, he said, the Council of Europe has been showing us how culture could be the bridge between history and modernity, between local and global and between peoples and nations.

“The Republic of Macedonia, which already actively takes part in the Ss. Cyril and Methodius Route, Iter Vitis Wine Route, Roman Emperors and Danube Wine Route, through its exceptionally rich and versatile cultural heritage, has the potential of not only being part of this network, but also of contributing as an equal creator of new initiatives,” Ljutkov said.

Our duty, the minister urged, is to highlight and present the values at disposal - from ancient traces to modern cultural practices, from spiritual heritage to living tradition.

Ljutkov said he sees the forum as an open invitation for sharing ideas for cooperation in creating cultural routes that will carry the values of the communities across Europe. “That’s why, I call on you today not only as a minister, but also as a citizen and a fan of culture to work together – state institutions, local communities, cultural and tourism workers, artists and researchers – in order to turn cultural routes into bridges between people, between generations, between the past and the future,” the Minister stated.

Ss. Cyril and Methodius Route, Iter Vitis Wine Route, Roman Emperors and Danube Wine Route, the cultural routes of the Council of Europe, which also include the country, will be presented at today’s event.