TEHRAN – The National Library and Archives of Iran (NLAI) and the Bavarian State Library in Munich plan to enhance bilateral cooperation in the future, NLAI director says.

“The Bavarian State Library houses over 10 million copies of books with a rich archive and the two libraries are willing to boost collaboration,” NLAI Director Seyyed Reza Salehi-Amiri, who visited Germany last week, told the Persian service of IRNA on Friday.

He added that the director of the Bavarian State Library is expected to visit the NLAI in the near future and added, “A rich archive of documents from Germany is also preserved at the NLAI.”

“The NLAI is among the 10 top libraries in the world, however, it badly needs to update its digital section. Moreover, Germans have made good progress in preservation of documents and we need their experience,” he continued.

Salehi-Amiri also paid a visit to the Berlin State Library during his sojourn in Germany. In his meeting with officials of the Berlin State Library, an agreement was reached to organize a joint exhibition in Iran and Germany.

Salehi-Amiri also met with Hermann Parzinger, the president of the Prussian Cultural Heritage Foundation (Stiftung Preussischer Kulturbesitz) in Berlin.

During the meeting, Parzinger said that both libraries should struggle against Islamophobia by giving a proper image of Islam.


In addition, Salehi-Amiri met with German Federal Archives (Deutsches Bundesarchiv) Director Michael Hollmann. He stressed NLAI’s readiness to exchange digital copies of documents preserved in both centers.

Salehi-Amiri also plans to visit the Austrian National Library in Vienna on the second leg of his trip to Europe.

RM/YAW
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