A wide circle of experts, from academics and scientists to political and public figures, will take part in the Second Forum on the Development of Parliamentarism, Leonid Slutsky, head of the Duma Committee on International Affairs, told reporters.
“The event brings together an unprecedentedly serious composition – and not only in quantity but also in quality,” said the deputy, noting that the organizers of the forum do not have the task to collect a record number of speakers.
According to Slutsky, the forum, which is being held at the initiative of the State Duma, will be attended by leading scientists, corresponding members of the Russian Academy of Sciences, the rector of MGIMO Anatoly Torkunov, academicians, political and public figures.
In addition, the Institute for African Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences is a partner in organizing the Russia-Africa Conference, which will be held on July 3. Specialists from Moscow State University named after M.V. Lomonosov.
“This is really a forum that has grown in quality composition … A very important know-how is that the third day of the forum will be entirely devoted to cooperation with African countries. We can safely say that this third day, July 3, will be a kind of forerunner of the big Russia-Africa summit, which will be held in Sochi on October 24-26, ”the MP said.
He also noted that there will not be an official delegation from the European Parliament. Firstly, the new convocation parliament has not yet been formed, the deputy reminded. “But even if it had been formed earlier, the majority would have opposed the formation of an official delegation,” the legislator noted.
At the same time, individual members of the European Parliament will take part in the forum, including the French politician Tierry Mariani.
Leonid Slutsky expressed confidence that the forum would become “pivotal” not only in the international agenda of the State Duma, but also in the work of legislators with new political elites in dozens of countries around the world on different continents.
“This is the most important area of work, there is a serious resource for parliamentary diplomacy,” he concluded.
Earlier, State Duma Speaker Vyacheslav Volodin told parliamentary journalists about the growing interest in the International Forum on the Development of Parliamentarism. If in 2018 more than 500 parliamentarians and experts from 96 countries of the world took part in the first forum, then in 2019 representatives of parliaments, international parliamentary organizations and experts from more than 110 countries plan to attend the event.
He noted that the main topics of the forum will be issues of international security, digital economy and environmental protection.
Vyacheslav Volodin added that on July 3 a parliamentary conference “Russia – Africa” will be held, in which representatives of more than 30 countries of the continent will take part. The speaker called one of the priorities to strengthen relations with African countries, including humanitarian and trade and economic cooperation.
