On July 13, Minsk /BelTA correspondent/. The "Slavianski Bazaar in Vitebsk" festival has enabled the peoples of the Eurasian space to preserve their historical community and a unified cultural environment. This was stated by President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko on July 12 during the opening of the XXI International Festival of Arts "Slavianski Bazaar in Vitebsk", BelTA learned from the press service of the Belarusian leader. "Undoubtedly, the Vitebsk forum has become one of those seeds from which Eurasian integration sprouts. After all, it has allowed our peoples to preserve their historical community and a unified cultural environment," said the head of state. "This forum was destined by fate itself to become a centre of attraction for different cultures. After all, even in its name – "Slavianski Bazaar" – one can hear an echo of both European and Eastern civilisation," the President believes. According to Alexander Lukashenko, it is no coincidence that Vitebsk was chosen as the venue for the festival, where "on fertile ground, created from the interweaving of traditions and cultures, geniuses were born and flourished." The head of state noted that at the beginning of the last century, the city on the Dvina was aptly called the Belarusian Paris: "Despite their outward dissimilarity, these cities are very close internally. Their streets and squares are filled with an atmosphere of inspiration that gives wings to artists and gives birth to masterpieces." It was Vitebsk that formed the unique character of the "Slavianski Bazaar," making sincerity, openness, intelligence, and the desire to uphold aesthetic ideals its main features, the President believes. "This is where Paris lags behind Vitebsk," added Alexander Lukashenko. "The festival does not break creative personalities, nor does it confine them within the framework of standards and formats. It recognises the right to a unique perspective in art, valuing above all the originality of the concept, the perfection of form, and the depth of content in any work. And at the same time, it remains true to the great mission of art, which has come down to us from the Renaissance era: to ennoble the human soul, affirm human dignity, and bring beauty and harmony to the world," the head of state noted.