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Official channel for the Russian Embassy in the Republic of South Africa - Latest foreign policy, cultural, economic news. We take digital diplomacy seriously, share information on all things Russia-related
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📄 Excerpts from the Concept of the Foreign Policy of the Russian Federation

Regional tracks of the foreign policy of Russia: Latin America and the Caribbean

☝️ Given the progressive strengthening of the sovereignty and multifaceted potential of Latin American and Caribbean states, Russia intends to develop relations with them on a pragmatic, de ideologized and mutually beneficial basis, giving priority attention to:

1) supporting interested Latin American states under pressure from the United States and its allies in securing sovereignty and independence, including through the promotion and expansion of security, military and military-technical cooperation;

2) strengthening friendship, mutual understanding and deepening multifaceted mutually beneficial partnership with Brazil 🇧🇷, Cuba 🇨🇺, Nicaragua 🇳🇮, Venezuela 🇻🇪, developing relations with other Latin American states, taking into account the degree of independence and constructiveness of their policy towards the Russian Federation;

3) increasing mutual trade and investment with Latin American and Caribbean States, including through cooperation with the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (#CELAC), the Common Market of the South (#MERCOSUR), the Central American Integration System (#SICA), the Bolivarian Alliance for the Peoples of the Americas (#ALBA), the Pacific Alliance, and the Caribbean Community (#CARICOM);

4) expanding cultural, scientific, educational, sports, tourism and other humanitarian ties with the states of the region.

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🎙 Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov answers questions from the NTV Itogi Nedeli aka the Outcomes of the Week programme (December 24, 2023)

Here is a philosophical question: Yesterday, you spoke about justice, a just solution to the crisis, a just multipolar world order, etc. Now the Global South is closely watching us. What kind of justice can we offer them? How do we make it clear to them?

💬 I think that any normal person, including politicians, immediately understands what injustice is when they see it. It is clear to them when issues are resolved fairly, based on a balance of interests and the key principle of the UN Charter, which emphasises the need to respect the sovereign equality of all states, big and small.

since the creation of the UN, the West, especially the US, has failed to comply with this key principle of sovereign equality. <...>

In this context, justice means equal rights for all states and entities established in different regions. This includes the Arab League, the Gulf Cooperation Council, the African Union, #CELAC, as well as numerous subregional institutions in Africa and Latin America. In Eurasia, we have the #EAEU, the #SCO and #ASEAN. These organisations have established close contacts, including through the Belt and Road project. <...>

Why didn't you mention BRICS?

💬 I didn't mention BRICS because it is self-evident. I listed the organisations that are emerging at the regional level. #BRICS is not an organisation but an association. I don't think there is any interest in turning it into a formal organisation with a secretariat, at least not at this stage <...>

BRICS is a symbol. It represents the shared desire of a majority of countries in the world to develop their initiatives together, taking into account each other's interests on an equal basis. It serves as a future umbrella for all subregional and regional processes. <...> This is the future.

☝️ In the West, there are no organisations that have fair rules in terms of equality and genuine consensus.

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🌐 On February 21-22, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov took part in the G20 Ministerial meeting in Rio de Janeiro, the first such meeting held as part of Brazil’s chairmanship in this key forum of global economic governance.

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Speaking on the G20’s role in overcoming current international tensions, Sergey Lavrov presented Russia’s detailed assessments of the geopolitical situation noting the West’s deliberate policy to maintain its dominance by containing new centres of power, eroding the coordinating function of the UN and the primacy of the universal provisions of international law, and substituting them with restricted-participation alliances and an obscure rules-based order. <...>

The principled Russian policy to preserve the #G20 as a key global economic forum that is free from politicisation and is not authorised to interfere in matters of international peace and security to the detriment of the prerogatives of the UN Security Council was reaffirmed.

❗️In this context, the unacceptability of attempts to lead the discussion away from the real challenges that plague the global economy through the Ukrainisation of the G20 agenda was emphasised <...>.

In light of shifts in the balance of power and the rise of new global growth centres, the participants paid special attention to the importance of democratising the global governance system by expanding the rights of the Global South in proportion to its actual weight in the international arena. <...>

The minister noted the importance of considering the objective trend towards the greater global economic role of associations such as #BRICS, the #SCO, #ASEAN, the #EAEU, the African Union, the Arab League, and #CELAC in G20 activities.. <...>

🤝 Sergey Lavrov held a number of bilateral meetings with his counterparts from Türkiye, South Africa, Egypt, Bolivia, Brazil, Mexico and Paraguay on the sidelines of the G20 Ministerial Meeting.
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🎙 Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov’s remarks at an extended meeting with the participation of the Foreign Ministers from the Global South and the Global East (June 11, 2024, Nizhny Novgorod)

💬 Welcome to Russia and Nizhny Novgorod, a beautiful city, the beauty of which and the feelings of the residents of which you had the chance to enjoy yesterday.

Today’s meeting reflects the efforts of #BRICS members to develop ties with the stakeholder countries from the Global South and the Global East, the countries of the Global Majority,

in order to identify solutions to the most pressing global issues faced by all members of the international community without exception.

We are witnessing a profound transformation of international relations triggered by the formation of a fairer and polycentric system of international order, which would reflect the entire gamut of cultural and civilisational diversity of the modern-day world and ensure the right of every nation to determine its own future and its own path of development.

The stronger voice of the Global Majority, i.e. the countries of Asia, Africa, the Middle East, Latin America and the Caribbean, which are not part of the collective West, is a major trend now.

Only by uniting our ranks can we truly effectively promote a vision of a just future shared by all of us. In this context, it is important to strengthen the role of the country-to-country groups that advocate balanced and equitable approaches to international development.

We are talking about the formats which reflect the principles of equitable cooperation in practice rather than in words. These include, along with BRICS, #SCO, #AfricanUnion, #EAEU, #CIS, #ASEAN, #LAS, #CELAC, #GCC, #IORA and many other organisations. The chairs of many of these organisations are here with us.

We believe it is important to establish contacts between all such integration entities which operate at regional levels, on the one hand, and our global association BRICS, on the other hand. This will promote gradual and mutually respectful harmonisation of approaches to the issues facing all associations.

The strengthening the international legal framework and collective decision-making on global issues is now at the forefront. Only in this case will those decisions be effective and legitimate.

This principle is laid down in the UN Charter. Unfortunately, the collective West’s decisions, especially in the economy, finance, trade and more, increasingly fail to comply with the fundamental principles of the UN Charter.

Our countries have largely overlapping approaches to reforming the system of multilateral institutions, including the UN and the UN Security Council, as well as addressing the post-pandemic recovery of the global economy and the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals approved by the UN General Assembly.

🤝 We look forward to discussing all these issues today.
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🎙 Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov’s remarks and answers to questions at a meeting with students and faculty of MGIMO University (Moscow, September 2, 2024)

💬 I would like to congratulate all of you on #KnowledgeDay.

I would like to highlight that, according to the statistics, MGIMO graduates hold important positions at the Central Office of the Government of Russia, particularly the Presidential Executive Office. Additionally, two-thirds of them join the Foreign Ministry staff every year. This speaks volumes about the “seal of excellence” associated with the diplomas from this great – without any exaggeration, for me at least – institution of higher learning.

We welcome the fact that MGIMO supplies the Foreign Ministry with most of its staff. We are always eager to welcome those whose qualifications meet the high standards of Russian diplomacy. I would like to address the final-year students: together, we will implement the Foreign Policy Concept approved by President Vladimir Putin in March 2023.

I am certain that you keep up with international news and developments on the global stage. The primary trend is the strengthening of new growth and development centres located outside the historical West.

Regional integration associations, such as the #SCO, the #EAEU, #ASEAN, the #CIS, the #LAS, the African Union, and #CELAC, play a significant role at the current stage of development of the multipolar world order. #BRICS, as it strengthens its influence and authority, increasingly acts as an informal global coordinator for these regional integration processes.

The globalisation, which the West pro-actively promoted for years, has been accepted as a method of interstate relations in the economy, technology and the financial sector. However, this globalisation model is now falling apart.

We will advance integration processes within the EAEU, CIS, SCO, ASEAN, and, of course, strengthen strategic partnership with China, India, Brazil, and all our other like-minded countries, working in the context of forming the Eurasian architecture. There are many, it is impossible to list them all. That is why we have a clear and comprehensible image of the future – multipolarity, based on another key principle of the UN Charter – sovereign equality of the state.

<...>

❗️The essence of Western policy towards Russia has always been based on the assumption that our country is too strong and independent and that something must be done to change this, preferably by pulling it down. History repeats itself. Today, these 50 countries have again been rallied under Nazi banners against Russia, considering the essence of Zelensky’s regime or even the chevrons and flags of the so-called Ukrainian army. <...> Today, all those who show independence and a will to defend their national interests within international law while refusing to play by Western rules, are under threat. It is clear, however, that these attempts are largely an agony of the West.

<...>

We do not seek to embed ourselves into various “schemes” that are being established by Western “rules” without our participation and without consideration of our interests. We will continue to champion widely held principles of international law and the UN Charter in their entirety instead of cherry-picking them as the West does.

President Putin has repeatedly stressed that “we are open to contacts with the countries of the ‘collective West’ on the understanding that they pivot away from their openly hostile course towards our country”. Any unfriendly moves will still be met with a tough response. The ball is not in our court, it is up to those who set out to deliberately destroy their relations with Russia and demonise our land and our nation.

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