The first independent Republic of Georgia, created on 28 May 1918, was a European country, with democratic institutions, elected parliament, non-violent foreign policy, gender equality and social responsibility. These values had not been destroyed by years of totalitarianism, despite repressions and the merciless suppressing of numerous patriotic uprisings. Today, when Georgia is again an independent country, we declare that we are an integral part of Europe – said Nikoloz Nikolozishvili, Georgian Ambassador to Poland, during the Independence Day reception with CIR's participation.

Last year’s 600th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Turkey and Poland reminded us of the times our countries were close to each another. It is via Turkey that Poland was discovering "Oriental flavours", and the Ottoman Empire, struggling against Poland, was learning Europe. The motto of the celebrations – "Old friends, new leaders" – rightly focuses upon the present. Poland and Turkey do possess a potential and are leaders in their regions – said Małgorzata Bonikowska, CIR's president, during a meeting with representatives of Turkish universities, working upon a project "Turkish-Islamic culture and civilisation in the Balkans and further".

The Indian Union consists of 29 states, 7 territories, and over 1,2 billion people, whereas the European Union comprises 28 states and over half a billion citizens. Despite geographic and cultural distance, we have many things in common. One of them is being faithful to democracy. We are also facing common challenges such as providing possibilities of growth to the young people, as well as appropriate education – said dr Małgorzata Bonikowska, CIR’s president, while delivering a speech at KIIT (Kalinga Institute for Industrial Technology) in Bhubaneswar, the capital city of the Indian state Orissa.