Moscow mayor sends greetings to Russian language seminar in Germany

Moscow Mayor Yuri Luzhkov has sent a message of greetings to the participants in the first international seminar, Russian Language Outside Russia, currently (Feb. 20-22) held in Germany. The message was conveyed by spokesman for the Moscow government Yuri Kaplun.

The message of greetings emphasises the role of Russian language teachers in Germany and other European countries in promoting the positive image of democratic Russia, preserving the Russian language and spreading Russian culture and identity.

The spokesman for the Moscow government stressed that the Russian capital was ready to help local enthusiastic teachers, and that a special programme had been worked out in Moscow to support compatriots living abroad in the next few years.

Yuri Kaplun handed in memorable presents to senior Russian language teacher of the Marbourg University, honoured doctor of literature of the Moscow Gorky Literature Institute Barbara Karhoff, to Chairman of the Association of Youth Societies of Russian Culture in Europe, Eurolog, Nadezhda Nelipe from Trir, and to founder of the Centre of Russian Language Teaching Methods in the Eurolog Association Vadim Levin.

Besides, each of the 40-odd participants in the seminar held in the Klausenhof Academy was presented with a book, International Experience of Support for Compatriots Living Abroad, recently published by the Moscow government.

Thanks to Barbara Karhoff's efforts, memorial plaques appeared in Marbourg to commemorate the first Russian all-round scholar and natural scientist of world importance Mikhail Lomonosov (1711-1765), and prominent writer, the author of Doctor Zhivago, Nobel Prize Winner Boris Pasternak (1890-1960). Barbara Karhoff expressed gratitude to the Moscow government for its attention to the problems of Russian language teachers in Germany.