IX Saint Petersburg international cultural forum canseled in 2020, will take place in 2021

The Ministry of Culture of the Russian Federation, in cooperation with the Government of the Russian Federation, has decided to cancel the IX Saint Petersburg International Cultural Forum in 2020. The event will take place in 2021. The dates of the Forum in 2021 had been announced back in 2018. Next year the Forum will take place on November 11–13.

The safety of Forum participants and guests is the main priority of organizers. The Ministry of Culture of the Russian Federation has held consultations with the Government of Saint Petersburg regarding holding the Forum this year. The participants of the discussion decided that it was impossible to hold the Forum in the face-to-face format this year without the threat of spreading the coronavirus infection (COVID-19) among the participants, given the worsening sanitary and epidemiological situation in Saint Petersburg and the rest of Russia.

At the same time, due to the diverse character of sections and tracks of the Forum, the Ministry of Culture of Russia thought it ineffective to hold the Forum online. This format would not allow to implement fully the main goals of the Forum: to facilitate open communication of the international cultural community, exchange opinions in the friendly atmosphere and support informal contacts between foreign delegations and culture workers from different countries.

The organizers of the Forum would like to thank wholeheartedly all those people who took part in preparing the Forum and covering its events. In 2021 the Forum will be happy to welcome at its venues all those who have expressed interest in its events and themes.

We are looking forward to seeing you next year!