The culture ministers of Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia signed a memorandum in Brussels on the participation as main guests at the 2018 London Book Fair.

“To be the main quest at one of the most important book fairs in the world gives Estonian literature a remarkable opportunity to stand out and shine. This gives us motivation to translate and publish our authors’ creation in English and in many other languages. To be in the center of global attention with our literature and culture is a beautiful present to Estonia for its 100th birthday,” said Urve Tiidus, the culture minister of Estonia.

The Baltic States stated to equally share the expenses related with marketing, advertisement and exhibition space, agreed on the organization of a joint cultural program and to cooperate with the London Book Fair, the British Council and the UK’s Publishers Association.

According to the memorandum, every state appoints a project leader whose task is to find local publishers and partners active in the field of literature to be involved in the organization of the fair. The exact plan of action and its details are to be collectively discussed at least twice a year.

The London Book Fair was founded in 1971 and is one of the most important book fairs in Europe after the Frankfurt Book Fair. This year’s main guest is South Korea. Previous guests have included Turkey, China and Russia.