Abstract
AN AZERBAIJANI STUDIES HEARTH IN TURKEY: AZERBAIJANI CULTURE ASSOCIATION
The Azerbaijani Culture Association was founded in Ankara on February 1, 1949, in the second period of the activities of Azerbaijan national immigration, which began with the arrival of M. Amin Rasulzade in Turkey in 1947, in Turkey. The association followed a policy to provide Anatolian Turkism's support to Azerbaijani action by means of maintaining the action for the independence and freedom of Azerbaijan and introducing Azerbaijan with its various aspects. Since the 1970s, the association has been partially effective in the increase of Turkish society's attention and sensitivity to these issues through publications and other activities by paying more attention to the general issues of Turkism and Turkish world. Azerbaijani journal, which began to be published by the Azerbaijani Culture Association since April 1952, has been the voice of enslaved Turks under the government of USSR by giving place to the issues of both Azerbaijan and the entire Turkish World on their pages in accordance with the general purpose and mission of the association. The Azerbaijani Culture Association has been the voice of Azerbaijan national immigration with limited opportunities during the most difficult days of the cold war period and has successfully fulfilled its mission to follow and introduce the action for the independence and freedom of Azerbaijan. The action for the independence and freedom of Azerbaijan, which was adopted as a natural mission by the association that conducted an active operation during the period that led to the dissolution of the USSR and the independence of Azerbaijan, resulted in success with the declaration of independence of Azerbaijan on October 18, 1991. Today, the association is continuing its activities for the development of cultural relations between Azerbaijan and Turkey. It is considered to be appropriate to transform the Association into a cultural organization with special status that could play a more active role in the development of cultural relations and cooperation between the communities of both countries by the support of Turkish and Azerbaijani Governments to make use of this experience of the Azerbaijani Culture Association which has fulfilled an important mission with its long-established past, tradition and experience of 67 years in a more efficient way.
Keywords
Azerbaijan Turks, Azerbaijani Culture Association, Azerbaijan national immigration, Mammad Amin Rasu