🇷🇺🇮🇳 Denis Alipov, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Russia to India @MFARussia:

▪️ During the successful visit of the external affairs minister S. Jaishankar to Russia in late December, the priority of our countries’ strategic partnership was highlighted.

▪️ We began the new year on a high note with this brainstorming, first in a series of meetings on the top level.

▪️ Russia and India maintain steadfast bilateral relations and intensified bilateral dialogue. We stand likeminded in preserving the unbiased character of multilateral institutions based on genuine democracy in international relations.

▪️ There are many prospects and opportunities in Russia-India cooperation in many spheres: technology, digitalization, agriculture, logistics, finance, and others.

▪️ In such turbulent times, Russia-India relations remain multidimensional and based on mutual interests and trust.

🎥 Public talk “International Turbulence: Challenges and Opportunities for India-Russia relations”

#Valdai_ThinkTank #India

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🇷🇺 Andrey Bystritskiy, Chairman of the Board of the Foundation for Development and Support of the Valdai Discussion Club:

◽️ In the field of security, New Delhi and Moscow could raise questions in a new way about countering both new and traditional challenges. 

◽️ The new challenges include threats in the digital environment, which has emerged as a critical but at the same time vulnerable part of the national and global infrastructure.

◽️ Both countries have competencies in the field of IT and digital technology, and similar positions with respect to the regulation of global digital processes. 

◽️ Regarding traditional challenges, India and Russia, as two nuclear powers, could begin consultations on the parameters of international security in the nuclear field.

◽️ The voice of the Global South must be louder in defining the parameters for managing such risk. 

◽️ India and Russia are capable of achieving more successful implementation of climate change goals and the promotion of the environmental agenda.

◽️ India has done a lot in recent years to diversify energy sources, raise environmental standards, and improve the living environment of its citizens.

◽️ Russia has significant natural potential for reducing climate risks, as well as unique expertise, including climatic processes in the Arctic — the global “weather kitchen”.

◽️ New Delhi and Moscow are also interested in diversifying international financial transactions. The BRICS can and should become one of the most important tools for promoting common global goals.

◽️ The Russian presidency in 2024 provides us with a good opportunity to take stock of the organisation’s capabilities to advance the shared agenda. 

◽️ Moscow respects New Delhi’s impartial position on current conflict situations and India’s desire to contribute to their resolution.

🎥 Public talk “International Turbulence: Challenges and Opportunities for India-Russia relations”

#Valdai_ThinkTank #India

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🇷🇺 Fyodor Lukyanov @ru_global, Research Director of the Valdai Discussion Club:

▪️ This is a big day for the Valdai Club because the idea of launching something significant in India has been floated in our environments since quite a while.

▪️ Russia and India are two countries which play a very important role in the international system whatever they do. The very fact of India’s and Russia’s existence on the map is very important for other players.

▪️ Today’s world is changing profoundly. Four years ago, when the Covid-19 pandemic started, no-one could understand what it was. When people realized the scale, it became a turning point in the world development.

▪️ Liberal globalization that started in the 1980s and early 1990s, which seemed essential and historically objective, was switched off globally in March 2020.

▪️ The world didn’t collapse after that. The whole international system quickly started to adapt to this new situation. That was the beginning of a new era.

▪️ What happened later — including the military collision between Russia and the west in Ukraine, and what we see now in the Middle East, and many other local conflicts — was the continuation of the end of globalization as we knew it.

🎥 Public talk “International Turbulence: Challenges and Opportunities for India-Russia relations”

#Valdai_ThinkTank #India

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🇷🇺 Fyodor Lukyanov @ru_global, Research Director of the Valdai Discussion Club:

▪️ Now we have a completely new situation which is absolutely vital to describe in order to identify the strategies of each particular power / country.

▪️ This is interconnection between all players on the globe, but it is not regulated by some institutions of some big powers as it was before. This is a new situation because most of us grew up in a very regulated international system.

▪️ The post-Cold war situation was based on the institutional arrangement, that helped countries to regulate their relationships.

▪️ Now all these institutions, including the UN and its Security Council, lose their efficiency.

▪️ It means that the international system comes back to the normal, because throughout history we saw unorganized and chaotic interaction between states.

▪️ The new order is pretty manageable but it requires much more responsibility from all players.

▪️ Now we see that more and more countries are becoming active on the international arena. We see that the most powerful countries like the United States, China, Russia or the EU see the limits of their capacities.

▪️ Russia and India are two countries that are best prepared to operate in this new world. Better than the United States and better than China. Resilience is the key.

▪️ Russia and India are now in the process of re-inventing themselves. We need to re-invent our mutual cooperation for better functioning in turbulent international relations.

🎥 Public talk “International Turbulence: Challenges and Opportunities for India-Russia relations”

#Valdai_ThinkTank #India

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🗣 On January 8, 2024, the first Valdai Club Russia-India conference, organised jointly with the Club's partner, the Vivekananda Foundation, took place in New Delhi.

📷 Photo gallery

🎥 If you missed the live broadcast of the public talk, watch the video on our website.

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🌍 The problem of ensuring peace and security continues to be one of the key challenges facing African countries, which, of course, creates certain obstacles to sustainable development.

Protests in Africa vary in nature and intensity. In some countries, they have developed into a protracted civil war between various factions, while in other countries they’ve managed to proceed with fewer casualties.

We propose dividing all conflicts on the African continent into four broad categories:

1️⃣ Inter-ethnic conflicts. Their emergence is due to the fact that almost all African states, with rare exceptions, are very multinational and obviously the tribes and peoples living in a particular territory sometimes have insoluble contradictions that are resolved by force.

2️⃣ Border conflicts – caused by the fact that state borders in African countries, in most cases, do not coincide with the boundaries of tribes and nationalities, since when dividing Africa, the European colonial powers did not take into account the boundaries between the ancient territories of various African peoples.

3️⃣ Religious conflicts – usually associated with the growth of Islamic fundamentalism and extremism, which further aggravates emerging conflicts.

4️⃣ Conflicts on socio-economic grounds – in many African countries there are many socio-economic problems, which can also ignite protest sentiments.

Information technology, primarily social media and artificial intelligence (AI), is an effective tool that can spark conflict in almost any state on the continent, writes Konstantin Pantserev.

https://valdaiclub.com/a/highlights/the-role-of-advanced-technologies-in-destabilising/

#GlobalAlternatives #Africa #conflicts

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🇮🇳🌍 One of the key crises in the Middle East and world politics, the Palestinian-Israeli crisis, has seriously affected India’s plans.

Several factors have significantly influenced India’s activity in the region.

1️⃣ First, India’s greater role in the Middle Eastern affairs was welcomed by the United States. Since Washington and Islamabad were at odds, India was perfectly suited in this regard to compete with China and support the preservation of American interests in the region.

2️⃣ Second, India has its own vision of China’s growing role in Asia and can see the damage that China can cause to Indian interests. For India, the Middle East in this regard is an important element in countering Beijing’s plans for the Belt and Road project.

3️⃣ Third, India aims to develop economic ties with the region, other than its regular import of oil and gas from the Persian Gulf countries. India’s aim is to become a global hub for world trade (from Southeast Asia to the Middle East and Europe).

The Middle Eastern leaders do not consider India either as a potential counterweight to Washington or as a replacement for it; China is better suited for this role. Middle Eastern leaders are ready to develop their economic ties with India, but in spite of its size, India will not take the place of the United States, Russia, China or the EU, Ruslan Mamedov writes.

https://valdaiclub.com/a/highlights/silk-road-vs-spice-route-india-in-the-middle-east/

#Multipolarity_and_Connectivity #Valdai_ThinkTank #India #MiddleEast

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🚧 The heated debate surrounding the issue of Latino immigration to the United States is not only an eloquent illustration of the deepening polarisation in the country.

Its context extends far beyond the migration crisis on the southern border and increasingly concerns contradictory inter-American relations and, more broadly, the prospects for the liberal democratic model of development, write Lev Sokolshik and Vasil Sakaev.

https://valdaiclub.com/a/highlights/illegal-immigration-to-the-united-states/

#Multipolarity_and_Connectivity #UnitedStates #migration #LatinAmerica

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📆 ANNOUNCEMENT: On January 18 at 12:00 noon Moscow Time (GMT+3), the Valdai Club will host an expert discussion on the results of Russia’s chairmanship of the Arctic Council in 2021–2023.

In recent years, Russia has made serious efforts to strengthen its economic position in the Arctic and to create new transport and logistics systems. The Arctic region has acquired fundamental importance for the internal connectivity of the Russian economy and strengthened its export potential.

On March 3, 2022, soon after the start of Russia’s special operation in Ukraine, seven member countries of the Arctic Council announced the suspension of their participation in all official events. As a result, Russia focused on the intranational goals of its chairmanship and the development of the Russian regions of the Far North.

❓What has been achieved during the Russian chairmanship of the Arctic Council?
❓What can Russia do to further develop the Arctic?
❓What will be the role of the Far North regions in the national development strategy?
❓How will NATO expansion affect the activities of the Arctic Council?
❓What are the prospects for Russia's participation in the AC and the creation of an alternative organisation with the participation of Asian states?

Participants in the discussion will try to answer these and other questions.

🎙️ Speakers:

🇳🇴 Glenn Diesen @glenndiesen, Professor at the University of South-Eastern Norway

🇷🇺 Anastasia Likhacheva, Dean of the Faculty of World Economy and International Politics, Higher School of Economics

🇷🇺 Vladimir Panov, Special Representative of the Rosatom State Corporation on Arctic Development Issues

Moderator:

🗣 Timofei Bordachev, Programme Director of the Valdai Discussion Club

https://valdaiclub.com/events/announcements/valdai-club-to-discuss-russia-s-chairmanship-of-the-arctic-council/

Working languages: Russian, English.

ℹ️ Information for the media: Dear journalists, to be accredited for the event, please fill out the form on our website. If you have any questions about the event, call +79269307763. 

Links to the live broadcast of the open sessions will be posted on all online platforms of the Valdai Club: on the website, X (formerly Twitter), VKontakte, Telegram and Dzen.

#WiderEurasia #Arctic #geopolitics

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⏰ TODAY at 12:00 noon Moscow Time (GMT+3), the Valdai Club will host an expert discussion on the results of Russia’s chairmanship of the Arctic Council in 2021–2023.

❓What has been achieved during the Russian chairmanship of the Arctic Council?
❓What can Russia do to further develop the Arctic?
❓What will be the role of the Far North regions in the national development strategy?
❓How will NATO expansion affect the activities of the Arctic Council?
❓What are the prospects for Russia's participation in the AC and the creation of an alternative organisation with the participation of Asian states?

Participants in the discussion will try to answer these and other questions.

Links to the live broadcast of the open sessions will be posted on all online platforms of the Valdai Club: on the website, X (formerly Twitter), VKontakte, Telegram and Dzen.

#WiderEurasia #Arctic #geopolitics

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🎥 LIVE: at 12:00 noon Moscow Time (GMT+3), the Valdai Club will host an expert discussion on the results of Russia’s chairmanship of the Arctic Council in 2021–2023.

https://vk.com/video-214192832_456239158

#WiderEurasia #Arctic #geopolitics

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🗣 On January 18, 2024, the Valdai Club hosted an expert discussion on the results of Russia’s chairmanship of the Arctic Council in 2021–2023.

📷 Photo gallery

🎥 If you missed the live broadcast of the discussion, watch the video via this link.

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🧊 The End of the Arctic Consensus?

On January 18, the Valdai Club hosted an expert discussion on the results of Russia’s chairmanship of the Arctic Council in 2021–2023. 

💬 Timofei Bordachev, the discussion moderator, emphasized that the issue of development of the Arctic region and Russia’s policy there is now of fundamental importance, since Russia has unique geographical opportunities to study and use the natural, transport and logistics resources of the Arctic.

💬 Anastasia Likhacheva, Dean of the Faculty of World Economy and International Politics, Higher School of Economics, believes that Russia should build relations with foreign partners as the main Arctic power in the world. The depth of strategic planning and development of the Arctic region in Russia is much deeper than that of other Arctic and non-Arctic states, Likhacheva noted. This does not negate possible interaction with other countries. Moreover, the basis of Russia’s state policy in the Arctic, in addition to ensuring security, provides for reliance on international cooperation in matters of economic development. However, the Arctic has now become a region of fierce international competition, and the illusions associated with the ultra-consensual approach of the Arctic Council over the past two years have been greatly devalued.

💬 Glenn Diesen @glenndiesen, Professor at the University of South-Eastern Norway, pointed out that the Arctic Council, of course, should remain in the new conditions, but its role should change. In his opinion, the development of the Arctic in the future will be associated with a reorientation of Russian policy – a departure from the idea of Greater Europe in favor of Greater Eurasia and a turn to the East as a whole. The Arctic, ceasing to be a frozen desert, is turning into a region of geostrategic tension, Diesen believes. This is due to the race for resources and control over transport routes. Against this background, Russia’s interests will lie in both finding new partners for the development of the Arctic and incentives to establish cooperation with the West in the future. The Eurasian approach to the Arctic, perhaps with the involvement of the BRICS, can resolve both of these issues, the expert believes.

💬 Vladimir Panov, Special Representative of the Rosatom State Corporation on Arctic Development Issues, outlined the situation around the “indicator of Arctic development” – the Northern Sea Route. Panov said that in 2023 a record was set for the volume of cargo and transit traffic. He indicated that there is great interest in redirecting cargo from the Suez Canal to the Northern Sea Route. This is also related to issues of ensuring the sustainability and safety of navigation. Speaking about the state of affairs in the Arctic as a whole, Panov emphasized that Russia is ahead of many countries in the field of Arctic projects for objective reasons.

https://valdaiclub.com/events/posts/articles/the-end-of-the-arctic-consensus/

#WiderEurasia #Arctic #geopolitics

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🇫🇮 Despite all its previous achievements and innovative potential, the Finnish economy is currently beset by a number of serious structural problems, including:

🔹 a decline in production and a slowdown in economic growth,

🔹 significant consumer and industrial inflation,

🔹 high unemployment, a shortage of skilled labour,

🔹 a chronic budget deficit with a rising public debt,

🔹 a negative trade balance, and a decline in foreign trade, especially with Russia, which had been one of Finland’s most important trade and economic partners for decades.

Globalisation, which once had a significant beneficial impact on the Finnish economy, is now in a transitional stage, and Finland’s position is no exception, as there is growing evidence that the country has begun to lag behind in terms of investment attractiveness, education, competencies and labour resources, Azam Muradov writes.

https://valdaiclub.com/a/highlights/finland-in-pursuit-of-a-welfare-society/

#Multipolarity_and_Connectivity #Finland #economy

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