Ramazan Abdulatipov: 2000th anniversary of Derbent celebrated by whole of Russia

The 2000th anniversary of the founding of the oldest Russian city, Derbent, was a truly Russian holiday, the head of Dagestan, Ramazan Abdulatipov, told a correspondent of Vestnik Kavkaza during a concert in the Kremlin Hall of Moscow titled 'Potter's Wheel: from the Derbent Fortress to the Gates of the Kremlin', dedicated to the 2000th anniversary of Derbent.

"We have been preparing for these days for a long time, and we had a great holiday in Derbent on September 19. It was organized by presidential decree for the 2000th anniversary of the city. The Government of the Russian Federation has provided a lot of support. One of our main partners was the Ministry of the North Caucasus, a large role was played by the embassy in the North Caucasus Federal District," he said.

"Recently we opened a large exhibition dedicated to the anniversary of Derbent in the Historical Museum, which was attended by Vladimir Putin," the head of the republic noted.

"We did a great job, but it's actually only the first stage of the restoration of Derbent, which has been in extremely poor condition. Now we are working with the government of the Russian Federation on a joint program for the next two years, and in the near future we are going to start its implementation," he stressed.

"We believe that in the long term our city will become one of the major tourist centers of Russia. And we will work in this direction," Ramazan Abdulatipov concluded.