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Azerbaijani Karabakh horses perform at British Queen's jubilee celebrations

16 May 2016 10:12 (UTC +04:00)

On behalf of the Azerbaijani delegation, a painting of Azerbaijan’s honored artist Sakit Mammadov was presented to the Queen.

The Azerbaijani participation in the Royal Windsor Horse Show was co-organized by The European Azerbaijan Society (TEAS) and the Azerbaijan Equestrian Federation (ARAF) with the support of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism.

The organizational work included arrangement of the trip of musicians and dancers to London, delivery of horses and riders to Windsor Castle and installation of the pavilion of the Azerbaijani culture. The delivery of the horses to the UK took two months. A variety of Azerbaijani folk dances and musical performances were presented at Windsor. Hundreds of British and foreign guests of the Azerbaijani pavilion got acquainted with the rich culture, traditions and cuisine of the country, witnessing Azerbaijan’s hospitality.

The Karabakh horses left a good impression of on Queen Elizabeth II. The Majesty Queen praised the magnificence of the horses and the excellent skills of the riders.

Deputy Chairman of the Azerbaijan All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG), Lord Kilclooney, who attended the event as a guest of TEAS, commented:

“I have visited Azerbaijan several times and been to every corner of this beautiful country. I was fascinated by the hospitality of the Azerbaijani people. The only place that I couldn’t see is the Armenian-occupied Nagorno-Karabakh region which is considered the cradle of Azerbaijani culture. Therefore, watching the performance of the Karabakh horses for the first time is of special importance to me. Unfortunately, it did not take place in Nagorno-Karabakh itself, but here – in the UK.”

Summing up the event, Lionel Zetter, Director, TEAS, said the Royal Windsor Horse Show was remarkable as another significant event contributing to the strengthening of relations between Azerbaijan and the UK.

“TEAS managed to bring a variety of cultures together in a common interest by initiating the participation of Karabakh Horses at the Royal Windsor Horse Show. This was a great opportunity to demonstrate to the world the rich cultural and historical heritage of Azerbaijan at a time when the Azerbaijani civilian population is subjected to the aggression of Armenian armed forces stationed in the occupied Nagorno-Karabakh region and other surrounding districts of Azerbaijan. Love of horses is a sigh of a civilized society and we hope that Azerbaijan will continue to participate in such events.