The symposium was a continuation of the international academic event held in Budapest in 2016 by Pázmány Péter Catholic University (PPCU) and the Hungarian Academy of Sciences (HAS). During the symposium the National Museum of the Republic of Tatarstan hosted an exposition directed at Hungarian prehistoric archeology, which was accompanied with the parallel exhibition of the Kazan Federal University (KFU).
The organization of the conference and the establishment of the exhibitions was made possible by the Tatarstan Academy of Sciences' Institute of Archaeology, the National Museum of the Republic of Tatarstan, the PPCU, the Hungarian Academy of Sciences, as well as the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade in cooperation with the Consulate General of Hungary in Kazan. The Hungarian side was represented by the scientific delegation of PPCU's Institute of Archaeology by Prof Szabolcs Szuromi, Dr Attila Türk, Balázs Sudár, Dr Balázs Mende and Bea Szeifert.
Prior to the conference two opening seminars were held in Russian at the ceremonial hall of the Kazan Federal University by Prof Ayrat Sitdikov, Director of Institute of Archaeology of the Tatarstan Academy of Sciences and Prof Szabolcs Szuromi, Rector of PPCU.
The opening of the symposium was followed by plenary speeches of Prof Ayrat Sitdikov and Dr Attila Türk, Head of Prehistoric Hungarian Research at PPCU's Institute of Archaeology, summarizing the analytical results of exploration conducted with state-of-the-art tools between 1974 and 2018.
Afterwards the signature ceremony of the framework agreement between KFU and PPCU took place involving the two heads of the respective institutions present. Ilshat Ghafurov and Szabolcs Szuromi rectors then engaged in detailed professional discussions only accompanied by a close circle.
In addition to heightening the already close inter-institutional cooperation with five years history between the two institutions, the Rector of PPCU proposed several initiatives to broaden the scientific relations with Kazan Federal University, which were warmly welcomed by the Rector of KFU. On the basis of the fruitful cooperation so far and the successful negotiations of on the 15th of October the Rector of the KFU has declared PPCU as its most distinguished European strategic partner.
As part of the official program Prof Szabolcs Szuromi also participated in the opening ceremony of the Hungarian prehistoric exhibition at the National Museum of the Republic of Tatarstan, where Director Gulchachak Nazipova speech was followed and corresponded with Szabolcs Szuromi's Russian dialogue on behalf of his university, both regarding the organization of the exhibition as one with both historical and scientific significance. Next Ádám Stifter, Consul General of Hungary in Kazan gave his words of welcome, after which Dr Attila Türk and Prof Ayrat Sitdikov briefly presented the theme of the exhibition.
As the last event of the rich scientific and cultural program, Prof Szabolcs Szuromi, Rector of PPCU and Prof Myakzyum Salakhov, President of the Tatarstan Academy of Sciences conducted detailed discussions reviewing the stages of the two institutions' periodical cooperation until now, and at the same time recording the areas (history, literature, linguistics) to further expand this scientific and cultural relationship. The meeting reached constructive results - it was held in a cordial tone and extended even over the timeframe dictated by the usual protocol in the presence of Consul General Stifter Ádám -, and at its conclusion an agreement between Tatarstan Academy of Sciences and PPCU was signed with special emphasis on joint work in archaeological research of prehistoric times.
