Shusha, Azykh cave might be included in UNESCO World Cultural Heritage List

By Azernews

By Laman Ismayilova

The work is being carried out to include Shusha in UNESCO's World Heritage List.

Chief of the Culture Ministry's Art and Digital Development Department Ramil Abbakirov said that this process may take one to two years, Report.az informed.

"UNESCO has several heritage lists: the UNESCO World Heritage List and UNESCO Creative Cities List. For instance, Lankaran  has been included in the UNESCO list Network of Creative Cities. Now we are working to include the city of Shusha both in the UNESCO World Heritage List and in the UNESCO Creative Cities List," he said.

Abbakirov stressed that Shusha's inclusion in UNESCO’s World Heritage List is not a quick process and requires preparing and checking certain documents and files.

"If we speak about the inclusion to the Creative Cities List, then one of the main criteria is the creative activity of the applicant city. Since last year Shusha has hosted several events and festivals. Here we can mention the Kharibulbul festival and the 13th Uzeyir Hajibayli International Music Festival, said Abbakirov.

"All these events are related to music which makes it  possible for us to develop a special document that certifies that Shusha is a culturally active city in the sphere of music and submit this document to UNESCO to include the city to the Creative Cities List," he added.

He pointed out that there are other culturally significant sites in the liberated territories, such as the Azykh cave and the Khudafarin bridges.

"Work is underway to include them to these lists, along with studies, and special files are developed to be sent to UNESCO," he concluded.

Meanwhile, Azerbaijan and UNESCO will celebrate the 30th anniversary of partnership.

The decision was announced at a meeting between Deputy Foreign Minister Elnur Mammadov and the Assistant Director-General for Priority Africa and External Relations of UNESCO Firmin Edouard Matoko at the UNESCO General Conference.

Azerbaijan and UNESCO have been enjoying successful cooperation since 1992.

In 2003, the parties signed the framework agreement on cooperation in the areas of culture, science, education, and communication, which allowed Azerbaijan to become one of the donors of UNESCO.

Many Azerbaijani cultural sites have been included in UNESCO's World Heritage List.

Icherisheher (Old City), Maiden Tower, and Shirvanshah's palace were included in the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2000, while since 2007 the Gobustan National Historical-Artistic reserve was also listed among these heritages.

Shaki, an important city at the crossroads of the historic Silk Roads was inscribed on UNESCO's World Heritage List during the 43rd session of the World Heritage Committee held in Baku.

In 2017, UNESCO recognized Azerbaijan's dolma as the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.

Art of crafting and playing with kamancha, presented jointly by Azerbaijan and Iran, was also inscribed on the UNESCO Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.

Moreover, the Pomegranate Festival, Art of miniature were inscribed in UNESCO Representative List in December 2020.

UNESCO also successfully celebrated the 600th anniversary of the death of the great Azerbaijani poet and thinker Imadaddin Nasimi and the 200th anniversary of the first settlement of Germans in Azerbaijan.

In 2021, Lankaran region was included in the UNESCO list Network of Creative Cities.