MOSCOW -- Iranian Minister of Culture and Islamic Guidance Seyyed Abbas Salehi has called for a long-term roadmap for cultural relations with Russia, describing the current Days of Iranian Culture in Russia as a starting point rather than an endpoint.
Salehi made the remarks Sunday evening at a gathering with Iranian artists who have traveled to Moscow as part of a 168-member cultural delegation named in memory of the 168 students and teachers martyred at the Shajareh Tayyebeh School in Minab. 
The delegation includes artists and cultural figures working across music, visual art, cinema, theater, literature, manuscripts and libraries, Persian language and poetry, as well as members of the media.
Speaking to the artists, Salehi described them as cultural ambassadors of Iran and said that Russia should be considered one of the priority countries in Iran’s cultural diplomacy. He stressed that effective cultural engagement requires a roadmap and the continuation of activities after the end of a cultural week.
The Days of Iranian Culture in Russia are being held in St. Petersburg, Moscow, Kazan and Astrakhan, with the program bringing together a wider range of artistic and cultural disciplines than previous Iranian cultural weeks abroad.
In music, Iranian performers are appearing alongside a conductor and musicians playing more than 20 Iranian and Western instruments. Exhibitions in Moscow and Kazan feature artists working in nine visual-art disciplines, including calligraphy,
illumination, mosaic and sculpture, while around 13 handicraft fields are represented, including metal engraving, khatam, enamelwork, leatherwork and embroidery.
Salehi said the diversity of the delegation and the number of Russian cities hosting the events distinguish the current program from earlier cultural weeks. He also pointed to the long history of cultural exchanges between Iran and Russia, as well as the existing institutional agreements between the two countries.
Among the areas of cooperation is cinema. Iran and Russia have signed a memorandum concerning joint film production, while the broader cultural agenda includes opportunities for cooperation in the creative industries and cultural economy.
Salehi also highlighted the importance of Russia’s cultural institutions, museums and libraries, as well as its established tradition of Iranian studies. He cited the potential for collaboration in areas including Persian literature, manuscripts, Islamic studies and exchanges with Russian regions with significant Muslim populations.
The institutional program has extended to the preservation of written heritage. Gholamreza Amirkhani, head of the National Library and Archives of the Islamic Republic of Iran, announced the signing of a memorandum of cooperation with the Institute of Oriental Manuscripts of the Russian Academy of Sciences. 
The agreement is intended to facilitate greater access to manuscripts and valuable resources held in the collections of the two countries, as well as exchanges of digital resources and researchers and joint research.
Amirkhani also visited the Oriental and Iranology section of the National Library of Russia in St. Petersburg, where he met library officials and examined manuscripts and other materials relating to Iran. 
The Iranian delegation also visited the memorial library of Russian Orientalist Ignaty Krachkovsky, whose personal collection includes Persian-language works.
The Russian side has likewise emphasized the role of literature and cultural exchange. Olga Lyubimova, Russia’s minister of culture, referred to the place of Persian literature in the cultural relationship between the two countries and recited a verse by the Persian poet Ferdowsi. 
Vadim Duda, director general of the Russian State Library, announced plans for a commemorative event devoted to the Persian poet Nizami Ganjavi as part of the Iranian cultural program in Russia.
For Salehi, however, the central question is what follows the current events. He said that a cultural initiative that simply begins and ends with a single program has limited impact, while sustained activity can establish a more durable relationship.
He also called for greater participation by the private sector, saying that the government’s role should increasingly be to facilitate cultural and artistic activity rather than to carry it alone. In his view, the cultural economy and the identity of Iranian art should develop alongside one another.
The 168-member delegation, traveling under the name of the Minab martyrs, therefore represents both a cultural showcase and a commemorative gesture. 
Across four Russian cities, the program brings Iranian music, visual art, handicrafts, literature, cinema and documentary heritage into direct contact with Russian institutions and audiences, while Salehi is calling for those encounters to become the foundation for continuing cultural cooperation.