The 1st Meeting of Audiovisual Media Regulators of member and observer countries of the Organization of Turkic States was held

On October 27, 2022, the 1^st Meeting of Audiovisual Media Regulators of the Organization of Turkic States (OTS) member and observer countries was held in Baku. The meeting was organized by the Audiovisual Council of the Republic of Azerbaijan.

The main purposes of the Meeting, which brought together regulatory authorities and other state officials in the field of audiovisual media of member states of OTS - Turkiye, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, as well as observer members Hungary and Turkmenistan, are to strengthen cooperation in the field of audiovisual media and its regulation between Turkic-speaking states, discussion of the concept presented by the Turkish side on the establishment of Audiovisual Media Regulatory Authorities Forum of OTS member and observer states and finally, the signing of a Declaration of Will on the establishment of the Forum.

Elmir Valizade, head of the Digital Media Division of the Presidential Administration of the Republic of Azerbaijan, Omer Kocaman, the Deputy Secretary General of the OTS, Ahmad Ismayilov, the Executive Director of the Media Development Agency of the Republic of Azerbaijan, and Ismat Sattarov, the Chair of the Audiovisual Council of the Republic of Azerbaijan delivered welcome speeches.

Elmir Valizade greeted the participants of the event and talked about the importance of such events. He said that the development of bilateral and multilateral cooperation between the member states within the OTS in recent years also gives impetus to cooperation in the field of regulation of television and radio broadcasting. The Chair of the Audiovisual Council Ismat Sattarov gave detailed information about the current state of audiovisual media in Azerbaijan and several innovations, spoke about the prospects of cooperation in the framework of the OTS and joint activities on audiovisual media. The Executive Director of the Media Development Agency, Ahmad Ismayilov, emphasized the importance of the organized event and spoke about the need to strengthen the cooperation between the Turkic states in all fields, which opens new perspectives, including in the field of audiovisual media and its regulation. Omer Kocaman, the Deputy Secretary General of the Organization of Turkic States, expressed his gratitude to the Azerbaijani side for such an opportunity to organize the event and noted that joint networking of Audiovisual Media Regulators is a need of the time. The OTS official expressed confidence that the exchange of experience and knowledge of countries in the field of regulation of audiovisual media will be beneficial to all parties.

The Meeting continued its work with the speeches of the participants, the concept presentation of the Turkish Radio and Television Supreme Council (RTÜK) on the establishment of the Forum and discussions around this presentation.

Within the frame of the Meeting, the 2^nd Meeting of the Media Coordination Committee of the OTS member and observer states was also held.

On October 28, 2022, it is planned to sign in Shusha the Declaration of Will on the establishment of the Forum of Audiovisual Media Regulators of the member and observer countries of the OTS.