A delegation of the Centre for Families, Women and Youth of the Directorate of Religious Affairs of Turkey visited Russia upon the invitation of Mufti Sheikh Ravil Gainutdin, chairman of the Religious Board of Muslims of the Russian Federation and theRussia Muftis Council. The delehation included the director of the Centre, Ms Fatma Haral Efe, and the well-known expert on miniature painting and tezhib (the art of gilding), Ms Semra Ata.

The Turkish delegation's visit to the Russian Federation was organised and initiated by the Association for Women's Cooperation under the Russia Muftis Coucil.

The delegates had a meeting with Rushan Abbyasov, who received the guests on behalf of Mufti Sheikh Ravil Gainutdin. He noted that long-standing cooperation with the Turkish Directorate of Religious Affairs made possible the visits of women's Muslim organizations in Russia and Turkey, and expressed his hope for further develoment of cooperation.

Ms Fatma Haral Efe shared her impressions of the business and cultural programmes of the visit and noted that the two countries have much in common in terms of preserving traditional family values.

The visit programme included a number of important meetings, including a meeting with Tatyana Butskaya, first deputy of the State Duma Committee on Family, Women and Children, where the parties exchanged views on the implementation of policies aimed at preserving traditional family values from the perspective of traditional monotheistic religions - Orthodox Christianity, Islam and Judaism.
Mrs Fatma Haral Efe spoke about the activities of the Ministry of Family of Turkey and expressed willingness to share their experience with relevant organizations and agencies.

Another event that took place was the round table "Russia - Turkey: Dialogue of Muslim women's organizations", which was held in the library of the Moscow Cathedral Mosque. Guzel Mubinova and Stella Khalikova-Brundukova outlined the projects run by the Department of Culture of the RBMRF, the Health Committee, and the Association of Women's Cooperation under the RBMRF.
Ms Fatma Haral Efe also provided information on the activities of the Kindness House Foundation of Turkey.

The parties agreed on cooperation and handling issues related to preservation of traditional family values and activities in the sphere of culture. The guests also attended Friday prayers at Moscow Cathedral Mosque, where they listened to a sermon of Sheikh Abdulmukhsin al-Qasim, Imam Khatib of the Prophet's Mosque in Medina, who came to Russia upon the invitation of Mufti Sheikh Ravil Gainutdin in order to participate in the Moscow International Qur'an Reciting Contest as a guest of honor and the chairman of the jury.

The delegation also visited the DAR Cultural Centre and the Yunus Emre Institute. Ms. Semra Ata offered a workshop on tezhip (gilding).