Dear colleagues,
Friends,
Today we are holding the ninth meeting Commissions of the General Council of the United Russia Party for international cooperation and support of compatriots abroad.
Three years ago (November 10, 2021), our Commission was approved. It was created on behalf of Russian President Vladimir Putin. It included not only representatives of United Russia, but also members of other parliamentary parties. This makes it possible to ensure the widest possible public agreement on the main directions of the foreign policy course, the head of state asserts. At previous meetings, we “checked the clock” on the most pressing international issues affecting the lives of our citizens. I would like to sincerely thank the members of the Commission for their useful joint work.
The topic of our meeting today concerns the initiative of Russian President Vladimir Putin, which he put forward in his speech at the Foreign Ministry on June 14 this year, on the creation of a Eurasian security architecture based on the principles of equality and indivisibility.
We are talking about the existing structures in Eurasia dealing with security issues, so that they form cooperative ties among themselves, promoting the harmonization of their agendas. Among such structures are the CSTO, the CIS, the SCO, ASEAN and others.
The meaning of this concept is to apply the principle of “regional solutions to regional problems” in practice. It is the countries of the region that must bear joint responsibility for resolving conflicts in Eurasia, preventing negative interference from outside.
Such work is all the more in demand due to the fact that the “collective West”, which made a choice in favor of a NATO-centric, Euro-Atlantic architecture, “put an end” to the agreements reached in this context, primarily within the framework of the OSCE, where the principle of indivisibility of security was repeatedly proclaimed by consensus at the highest level and it was asserted that no organization The OSCE will not claim a dominant role in the region. It was all “trampled”.
In recent years, especially after the coup in Ukraine, NATO has been doing exactly the opposite – expanding, claiming a dominant role, not only in the West of our continent, but also throughout the entire space, stating that for the security of alliance members it is important to spread its influence in the Asia-Pacific region and form closed blocs there. The initiative put forward by the President of Russia is about a different approach to security – equal, secured without the participation of extra-regional forces. It is relevant and is already being implemented.
The 2nd International Conference on Eurasian Security Issues was held in Minsk on October 31 – November 1 this year. President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko spoke there, and 600 representatives of both official structures and experts from more than 40 countries participated. I was joined by the Deputy Prime Minister of Serbia, the Foreign Ministers of Hungary, Syria, representatives of the governments of China, Myanmar and other countries, the leadership of the executive structures of the Union State, the CSTO, the CIS, the SCO, and the CICA.
It is understood that by the next conference we will try to develop a “Eurasian Charter of Diversity and Multipolarity in the 21st Century.” This is a policy document that will summarize all the initiatives put forward both during the discussions of the Minsk Conference and in other forums.
To promote this initiative, we took advantage of the opportunity of the meeting held on October 7 this year The CIS Council OF Ministers. We have adopted a Statement on the principles of cooperation in ensuring security in Eurasia. Besides Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan joined the document. We will continue to spread this initiative on other platforms. At the same time, as President Vladimir Putin said, when talking about equal and indivisible Eurasian security, we do not “slam the doors” on European countries, with the understanding that they will be ready to participate in joint work solely on the basis of equality and with the rejection of hostile, bloc politics and neocolonial practices. On this basis, representatives of the leadership of Serbia and Hungary participated in the Minsk Conference. It is in our interests to involve parliamentary structures, including the CSTO Parliamentary Assembly and the CIS Parliamentary Assembly, in the elaboration of ideas. There is an interest in working together in these organizations.
The inter-party processes initiated by United Russia to form a forum of states opposing new forms and practices of neo-colonialism fit into the goals that we set for ourselves.
The forum “World Majority for a multipolar world” It took place on June 17-18 this year in Vladivostok in the format of “BRICS and partner countries” and was interesting. The final statement reflects the priorities of our BRICS presidency.
The first meeting of the Standing Committee of the Anti-Colonial Movement “For the Freedom of Nations!” was organized on the sidelines of the Forum. We believe that in parallel with the promotion of Eurasian security initiatives, it is necessary to promote the same approaches through the BRICS structures in a global context. It was decided to create an Expert Council under the Standing Committee of the Movement “For the Freedom of Nations!”. This is a useful arrangement. I am sure that the results of the experts’ work will be in demand.
If we talk about the anti-colonial struggle, which has global significance, within the framework of The Group of Friends in Defense of the UN Charter, created on the initiative of Venezuela with our active support, adopted a resolution “The eradication of colonialism in all its forms and manifestations” in the Fourth Committee of the UN General Assembly. 99 countries voted “for” this project, only one voted “against”. A group of others, guided by Western narrow political considerations, “abstained” in order not to resist The global majority, the Global South and the East. This is a serious signal.
The resolution provides for the establishment of the International Day against Colonialism in All Its Forms and Manifestations on December 14. It decides to include the relevant item in the agenda of the next, 80th session of the General Assembly. This work is becoming systematic in all these areas. The process of developing ideas and formulating tasks is actively underway.
On November 10, this year, the Russia–Africa Partnership Forum ended, where the topic of getting rid of the neocolonial problems that persist in the economy is acute. Most of my interlocutors, the foreign ministers who participated in the Forum, raise the question of the need to analyze Africa’s place in the international division of labor. Based on the fact that it is still (freed from colonial oppression) a supplier of raw materials, and all added value and profits are made outside its borders, primarily in the West. This topic fits into the Commission’s mandate.
