A bust of the great Kazakh thinker Abai Qunanbayuly was unveiled in Rome's Villa Grazioli Park (Parco di Villa Grazioli). The ceremony was attended by Aida Balayeva, Minister of Culture and Information of the Republic of Kazakhstan, Yerbolat Sembayev, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of Kazakhstan to the Italian Republic, representatives of the Italian creative intelligentsia, and members of Kazakhstan's official delegation.
Speaking at the unveiling, the minister noted that Abai Qunanbayuly was an outstanding figure who became a spiritual beacon for the Kazakh people. The central ideas of his work were a call for kindness, justice, enlightenment, and labor. Therefore, the appearance of his image in Rome is a significant event, a symbol of the spiritual bridge between cultures, opening a new chapter in the cultural ties between Kazakhstan and Italy.
"In recent years, relations between our countries have acquired a particular dynamic of development. Last year's official visit by the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan to Italy, as well as the visit by the Prime Minister of Italy to Kazakhstan, took our cooperation to a new level. The Italian President's visit to Kazakhstan in September opened new horizons for cooperation and was marked by a number of important negotiations. Today's unveiling of the Abai monument is a direct continuation of the agreements reached, a symbol of friendship and mutual respect between our peoples," said Aida Balayeva.
It's worth noting that the memory of the great Kazakh thinker is especially warmly revered abroad. Monuments, busts, and memorials to Abai have been erected in major cities and capitals around the world—Tashkent, Moscow, Kazan, Bishkek, Beijing, Cairo, Budapest, Tehran, Ankara, Istanbul, New Delhi, Geneva, Paris, Rennes, Sarajevo, Tbilisi, Berlin, Seoul, Kharkiv, Baku, and Rio de Janeiro, among others.
Aida Balayeva and Yerbolat Sembayev also laid flowers at the monument to Chingiz Aitmatov.