The Federation Council Speaker spoke at a plenary session of the autumn session of the CIS Interparliamentary Assembly in Bishkek.
Valentina Matvienko, the Chairperson of the IPA CIS Council and the Federation Council Speaker, chaired the 56th plenary session of the Interparliamentary Assembly of the IPA CIS in Bishkek.
The session was attended by the Chairman of the Jogorku Kenesh of the Kyrgyz Republic, Nurlanbek Shakiev, Secretary General and Head of the Secretariat of the IPA CIS Council Dmitry Kobitskiy, and parliamentarians from Russia and the CIS countries.
The Federation Council Speaker emphasised that holding IPA events in different Commonwealth countries has become a good tradition, and expressed gratitude to her Kyrgyz colleagues for volunteering to hold the autumn session in Bishkek.
According to Valentina Matvienko, the IPA CIS bodies, standing committees, expert councils, and working groups have performed effectively in 2023. Model lawmaking efforts resulted in drafting 34 documents. “Thus, over the years, the total number of documents developed by CIS parliamentarians at the IPA CIS has reached 684.”
The Federation Council Speaker noted the success of international forums held under the IPA CIS, including the 7th St Petersburg International Labour Forum, the 10th Nevsky International Ecological Congress, the International Travel Hub Tourism Forum Sodruzhestvo, the International Forum “St Petersburg — the Parliamentary Capital of the Commonwealth,” the 8th International Cultural and Educational Forum “Children of the Commonwealth” in Uzbekistan, the Sustainable Development of Mountain Territories Forum, and others.
Valentina Matvienko also informed the audience about the decisions adopted by the participants of the IPA CIS Council meeting that was held just before this session.
In her welcome address, the Speaker of the Milli Majlis of the Republic of Azerbaijan Sahiba Gafarova, highlighted the IPA CIS' productive activities in all areas of interparliamentary cooperation. She emphasised the importance of the IPA’s role. “The IPA makes a significant contribution to promoting bilateral and multilateral parliamentary cooperation. The IPA’s activities help expand relations between countries. The humanitarian aspect of cooperation, aimed at strengthening mutual understanding and neighbourliness among the CIS member states, is of particular importance.”
Speaker of the Council of the Republic of the National Assembly of the Republic of Belarus Natalya Kochanova emphasised in her welcome address that the IPA CIS’ activities contribute to the development of comprehensive interaction between countries and peoples, as well as to the maintenance of peace and security in Eurasia. “Given the existing geopolitical realities with a multipolar order taking shape, the importance of the CIS mission has vastly increased,” she said. According to Natalya Kochanova, productive cooperation sets an example of sovereignty and independent development based on national interests for the world to follow. At the same time, she pointed out that the great Russian language is a powerful unifier for millions of people, an important factor for Eurasian integration, and the common heritage of all CIS nations.
Rustami Emomali, Chairman of the Majlisi Milli Majlisi Oli of the Republic of Tajikistan, is confident that the results of the IPA CIS autumn session will contribute comprehensively to strengthening the Assembly's interaction in all areas of its activities. “The Interparliamentary Assembly has immense potential and the right conditions for further expanding mutually beneficial cooperation within its framework. Our goal is to develop and implement measures that would be aimed at using this potential for progress among the CIS countries and improving the well-being of their peoples.”
Davron Mukhamadiev, the head of the regional delegation of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, noted the long-time friendly and productive history of cooperation with the IPA CIS, which began in 2012. “Many years of partnership have seen concrete achievements: a range of initiatives have been implemented to develop model laws aimed at creating proper conditions for effective preparations to respond to natural and man-made disasters, crises, and emergencies, as well as ensuring equal access to health services for the most vulnerable populations.”
The Federation Council Speaker spoke about the role of the Russian language as the language of interethnic communication in the CIS.
The Federation Council Speaker praised the Year of the Russian Language in the CIS countries, which became a major international cultural event. “The CIS countries demonstrated the desire and readiness to preserve and develop the single humanitarian space in all its diversity, with the important connecting mission of the Russian language.”
The Federation Council Speaker noted that the fact that the presidents of the CIS countries signed an agreement to establish the International Organisation for the Russian Language as part of celebrating the Year of the Russian Language was deeply symbolic. “Without a doubt, the IPA CIS will engage in the activities of this organisation,” Valentina Matvienko said.
The Russian language has been and remains an important part of the world's cultural heritage, and one of the most spoken languages on the planet. The Russian language is an official or working language in 15 of the 23 largest UN international organisations, the Federation Council Speaker said. “The Russian language has consistently come second after English in terms of the number of websites for several years now, which shows its ability to adapt to the realities of the day.
In the CIS, the Russian language serves as the basis for an integration dialogue,” the Federation Council Speaker said. “We don't need translators. A common language makes mutual understanding and cooperation significantly easier and simpler, including on the IPA CIS platform.”
According to Valentina Matvienko, the Russian language is a true symbol of multi-ethnic Russia. “Throughout the centuries, the Russian language has been a means of interethnic and intercultural communication. Representatives of many Eurasian nations can find words from their native languages in the Russian language. The ability to seamlessly absorb borrowed words from other languages, including the words from the languages of our CIS neighbours, is a wonderful property of the Russian language.”
Prominent writers, thinkers, and public figures such as Mirza Fatali Akhundov, Yanka Kupala, Olzhas Suleimenov, Chinghiz Aitmatov, Sadriddin Ayni, Rakhim Esenov, and Said Ahmad Khusankhojaev have significantly enriched the Russian language.
According to Valentina Matvienko, language policy is important for any country; it is a priority and a very sensitive matter for society. “We see the efforts of each of the CIS countries to strengthen their national languages which is quite natural. As Chinghiz Aitmatov said, the longevity of a nation is in its language.”
Russia highly values the care of the Russian language taken by the Commonwealth countries. However, the Federation Council Speaker noted with regret that some other countries ignore or restrict the right of ethnic communities to use their native language and promote a strict policy of language assimilation. “We see the tragic consequences of this policy in Ukraine. They turn people who have lived in this land for centuries into outcasts and 'non-citizens,' not allowing them to speak or receive instruction in their native language.”
The Russian language is not a language of enmity but a time-tested means of mutual understanding and cultural dialogue, Valentina Matvienko emphasised.
According to the Federation Council Speaker, 255 million people around the world speak Russian. “For various reasons, the number of Russian speakers has decreased over the past 30 years, which objectively narrows the space for cultural dialogue. We need to acknowledge this to reverse this negative trend.”
Russia is among the top 10 countries in terms of the number of foreign students, and next year, over 400,000 international students will study in Russia, the Federation Council Speaker said. “The CIS countries, which account for more than half of foreign students, remain our priority.”
Valentina Matvienko highlighted the Russian Teacher Abroad project which went live in Tajikistan in 2017 and has expanded to include foreign countries. “Today, more than 100,000 schoolchildren worldwide take part in this project.” The Federation Council Speaker believes that open education centres where instruction is provided in Russian and Russian language teaching centres, as well as the activities of Slavic universities and branches of Russian universities in foreign countries play an important role. Over 80 percent of branches of our universities are located in the CIS countries, but other countries also want to have such branches. She also noted the contribution of the Russian Houses abroad and Russian language centres at local universities, which operate in more than 80 countries worldwide.
“We see the Russian language as the heritage of all peoples in Russia, as well as the heritage of the peoples living on the vast territory of Eurasia,” Valentina Matvienko said. “It not only provides an opportunity for a direct cultural dialogue, a working tool for integration entities, businesses, and researchers, but also a unique chance for everyone in this common space to receive education in another country, to implement joint projects, and to find employment in neighbouring countries. Citizens of our countries leverage this, so by supporting the Russian language, we work in the interests of all people in the CIS countries.”
Vice President of the National Assembly of the Republic of Armenia Ruben Rubinyan highlighted the importance of the Russian language as a language of interethnic communication. He talked about cooperation between Armenia and Russia in education, teaching the Russian language in secondary and higher education institutions, and the implementation of joint humanitarian projects.
Chairman of the Senate of Parliament of the Republic of Kazakhstan Maulen Ashimbayev cited the President of Kazakhstan saying that a common cultural and humanitarian space remains an important factor in uniting the CIS. “At the same time, the existing balance of the harmonious development of the languages of the peoples of the CIS countries and the Russian language is among the factors behind the success of our cooperation.” Maulen Ashimbayev emphasised the importance of the Russian language for the people of the Republic and for promoting contacts with the CIS countries.
Chairman of the Majlisi Milli Majlisi Oli of the Republic of Tajikistan Rustami Emomali noted the focus on the Russian language studies at schools and universities. Joint projects with Russia in education, including the construction of new schools with instruction in Russian, are being implemented.
Chairperson of the Senate of the Oliy Majlis of the Republic of Uzbekistan Tanzila Narbaeva highlighted the importance of preserving the Russian language and culture in the Republic, studying the Russian language in preschools, schools, and higher education institutions. She expressed the intention of Uzbekistan's parliamentarians to actively contribute to the activities of the International Organisation for the Russian Language, the creation of which is underway.
Member of the Commission of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Union of Belarus and Russia on Culture, Science and Education and State Duma deputy Olga Germanova also spoke on this issue. She informed the audience about language and culture development programmes, as well as the implementation of youth projects in the Union State.
The plenary session participants reviewed model law projects, including “On Insuring Liability of Medical Entities for Causing Harm to Patients,” “On Assessing the Potential Impact of Mining Activities on the Health of the People Residing in Adjacent Areas,” and “On Organic Production.” They also reviewed recommendations for the CIS member states on preventing violations in ICT, improving legal regulation in combating illegal activities in the waters of the CIS member states, and developing cooperation in economic security.
The session ended with a ceremony to present awards of the Interparliamentary Assembly of the CIS member states.