TRANSCRIPT OF REMARKS BY RUSSIAN FOREIGN MINISTER SERGEY LAVROV AT A MEETING WITH REPRESENTATIVES OF THE LEADING RUSSIAN NON-GOVERNMENTAL ORGANIZATIONS, MOSCOW, JUNE 22, 2004

Unofficial translation from Russian

Transcript of Remarks by Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov at a Meeting with Representatives of the Leading Russian Non-Governmental Organizations,

Moscow, June 22, 2004

It is very pleasant to see here the representatives of leading Russian non-governmental organizations. Dialogue and cooperation with the civil society is important for us because it is necessary to take into account all aspects of public opinion in working out the line in implementing the foreign policy that the President of the Russian Federation has determined in accordance with the Constitution and which we seek to implement on the basis of a broad consensus in society. This policy is nationwide in character and it is based on national interests. The main interest is the creation of the most favorable external conditions to ensure the country's security, the development of its economy, the social sphere and to ensure the wellbeing of the citizens. Such a dialogue, and it has been going on for some time, will help us to look for the most effective way of achieving these goals.

In his recent address to the Federal Assembly, the President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin stressed the need to stimulate further growth of the institution of civil society in Russia. The key role in this belongs to non-governmental organizations the main ones of which are represented here today. According to the statistics provided us by the Justice Ministry and the Federal State Statistical Service of Russia, there are between 400,000 and 500,000 non-governmental organizations in Russia today. But only a few of them, you could count them on your fingers, are active in the international arena, have the status of international non-governmental organizations, are developing ties with various international structures such as the organizations of the UN, the Council of Europe, OSCE, etc. The Russian Foreign Ministry sees these organizations as partners in solving common tasks in the sphere of foreign policy, the tasks that face the country and the people and that we have been charged with implementing.

We already have some positive experience of cooperation with non-governmental organizations. At the Ministry's initiative a consultative council was set up which was later transformed into the NGO Council under the Chairman of the State Duma of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation, and from December 2003 was transformed into the NGO Council under the Parliamentary Group of the Russian Federation headed by Gennady Seleznyov which, as we understand, sees it as its main task to promote the interaction of non-governmental organizations and the deputies with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and through it with international structures and foreign countries.

The Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs took an active part in preparing the Civil Forum which was chaired by Vladimir Putin and whose result was the creation of the National Civil Council for Foreign Policy. It includes prominent Russian non-governmental organizations. This attests to the interest that is observed in the field of establishing interaction within NGOs. In 2001 the Foreign Ministry formed an interdepartmental group for interaction with government organizations which comprises practically all the structural divisions of the Ministry. Proceeding from the experience of that work in recent years, we highly value the civil and creative potential of Russian non-governmental organizations and believe that our potential can be used in such important areas of our foreign policy as ensuring Russian interests in the economic, social and humanitarian spheres, protection of the rights of fellow countrymen abroad, promotion of the achievements of Russian culture, the Russian language and in general contributing to an objective perception of Russia's image abroad.

We have entered a period that will see a whole series of dates connected with the jubilee of Victory over Fascism. I think it is an important area of our joint work because against the background of what is happening in the world today, it is extremely important to counteract the forces that seek to revise the Second World War, to belittle the role of our country in the victory over fascism, to rehabilitate the accomplices of Nazism, as unfortunately is being attempted in some of our neighboring countries.

We seek to make our interaction with non-governmental organizations more effective. We want to look more actively for common ground, to create mechanisms of cooperation, including through organizations of the UN, the Council of Europe, the European Union and in other areas where our interests and opportunities coincide. Let me also mention the space of the CIS where this movement is also gathering momentum. It would be interesting to look at that aspect of the foreign ties of the Russian NGOs. We believe that Russian non-governmental organizations should aspire to a solid and broad international level. Your partners in Western countries have long and actively been developing that domain. We will be interested, given reciprocal interests, in helping you in this and supporting you by consultations and otherwise.

When we speak about cooperation we don't mean that we should agree with each other on everything. What makes our contacts interesting is precisely that they enable us to reveal the whole spectrum of opinions and views on foreign policy problems that exist in the framework of the civil society. We are ready for further broadening of cooperation on this basis. On the whole, what is needed is a jointly developed concept, a kind of strategy of the participation of the Russian non-governmental sector in international affairs. We would be ready, proceeding from your wishes, and taking into account the tasks that face the Ministry and in accordance with the Foreign Policy Concept approved by the President to render it every assistance. That would fully correspond to international practice. If we manage today, from the results of the exchange of opinions and effective dialogue, to agree on mechanisms of mutually beneficial interaction, that would probably be useful to everyone.