On June 1, 2026, Moscow will host the VI International Scientific and Expert Forum “Russia — Middle East”. The organizers are the Primakov Center for Foreign Policy Cooperation together with the Institute of Oriental Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences (IV RAS).
The forum is the flagship program of the Primakov Center. For six years, the project has brought together leading researchers, diplomats and representatives of think tanks to discuss key processes in the Middle East.
Venue: Reception House of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Spiridonovka St., 17).
Participants from 10 Countries
This year, the forum will be attended by experts and heads of research centers from 10 countries: Algeria, the United Kingdom, Jordan, Iraq, Iran, Lebanon, Oman, Pakistan, Syria and Turkey.
Welcoming addresses will be delivered by:
- Academician of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Scientific Director of IV RAS Vitaly Naumkin;
- Deputy Director for Scientific Work of IV RAS Vasily Kuznetsov;
- Executive Director of the Primakov Center for Foreign Policy Cooperation Victoria Karslieva.
Central Expert Session
The central event of the first day will be the expert session “Regional Security System: Is There a Chance?”. Participants will discuss prospects for forming a new security architecture in the Middle East, possibilities for reducing the level of confrontation in the region, and finding models of interaction that take into account the interests of key regional and international players.
Among the forum speakers:
- Mazen Az-Zaidi (Iraq) – Chairman of the “Path of Iraq” Research Center, Advisor to the Prime Minister on Foreign Affairs;
- Alireza Khoda Gholipour (Iran) – Deputy Director of the Institute for Political and International Studies at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Iran;
- Kadir Temiz (Turkey) – President of the ORSAM Center for Middle Eastern Studies;
- Hassan Momani (Jordan) – Director of the Center for Strategic Studies at the University of Jordan;
- and others.
Meeting with Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation
The forum program also includes a meeting between the participants and Georgy Borisenko, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation. The meeting will focus on current issues of Russian policy in the Middle East and prospects for Russia’s cooperation with the countries of the region.
The material is provided by the press service of the Primakov Center
