Main foreign policy events of 2013

1. The events of 2013 evidence of the reinforcement of elements of instability in global affairs caused by preserving disequilibrium in economic and political development at global and regional levels, as well as actions in diverse factors related to an uneasy process of the establishment of a polycentric model of international relations. Global competition is aggravating; rivalry between different value landmarks and development models is becoming more and more vivid. In these conditions, adequate answers to global challenges may be found only on the basis of joint action of the International community.

The latest changes in the global geopolitical landscape were reflected in a new edition of the Concept of the Foreign Policy of the Russian Federation (approved by the President of the Russian Federation on the 12 February). The updated Concept accumulates large historical experience of the Russian state and reflects an updated vision of priorities of the country in the drastically changing modern world. It confirms succession in the foreign policy course, which is based on principles of pragmatism, openness, multi-vector nature, gradual promotion of national interests without slipping down to confrontation, which have proved their efficiency and will further determine the philosophy of actions of Russia on the international stage, allowing it to make its own independent and consistent foreign policy, which is in demand as the most important factor of global balance and geopolitical stability. With the basis on items of this document, Russia undertook targeted efforts in the interests to ensure international security, establishment of the rule of international law, reinforcement of the central coordinating role of the UN in international relations.

2. The Russian foreign policy was focused on mobilisation of collective effort in the international community in the interests to contribute to a peaceful resolution of regional crises and conflict situations.

The development of the situation around Syria is a vivid example that a withdrawal from forceful pressure in favour of peace logics brings specific results. We managed to avoid an external military interference into Syrian affairs, dangerous degradation of the situation in the Middle East and proliferation of waves of this conflict far beyond the borders of the region mainly thanks to the consistent position of our country.

The development of joint approaches by Russia and the United States allowed to achieve breakthrough decisions to establish international control over Syrian chemical weapons for the purposes of its further elimination. The first part of this process has successfully completed. The main parameters of the second phase were approved on the 17 December at the session of the Executive Committee of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW).

Within the framework of the efforts to find political outcomes for the Syrian crisis, the Russian Federation jointly with its partners continued to search ways to convene the Geneva-2 international conference, which is envisaged to launch interSyrian talks, as soon as possible.

As a result of our consistent efforts to settle Iran's Nuclear Programme (INP), we reached a balanced agreement between P5+1 partners and Iran (Geneva, 24-25 November), which allows to noticeably come closer to the resolution of one of the most complex and long problem of the world policy. The Geneva agreement is based on the concept, proposed by the President of the Russian Federation, which is based on superposition and reciprocity principles, and corresponds to the Russian position in favour of a political and diplomatic resolution of INP. It envisages the acknowledgement of Iran's right to use nuclear energy for peaceful purposes, including to enrich uranium, provided that all the issues the international community has are clarified and such activities are put under comprehensive IAEA control, which will allow to reinforce stability, trust and security of all the countries of the region, including Israel.

During this year, the region of the Middle East and North Africa continued to stay in turbulence. In these conditions, Russia undertook active efforts to preserve stability, to prevent the development of the situations along a crisis spiral. We continued our consistent work to develop bilateral cooperation with Arab countries. Russia believed that deep transformations on the vast space of the Middle East and North Africa should not push to the side-lines the need to settle the Arab-Israeli conflict. We had active contacts with Israeli and Palestinian authorities, as well as our partners from the Middle East quartet of international mediators. Russia welcomed the renewal of the Palestinian-Israeli negotiation process in July. March saw the first (in one and a half years) ministerial meeting between members of the quartet on the side-lines of the 68th UN General Assembly in New York, during which a decision to hold monthly sessions at the level of special envoys was adopted.

The task of creation of favourable conditions for the creation of a zone free of nuclear and other weapons of mass destruction and means of their supply in the Middle East (WMDFZ) was the focus of attention.

3. The Russian presidency of the G20 in 2013 was successful. The G20 summit on the 5-6 September in St Petersburg approved several innovative initiatives of Russians, including in respect of the ways of accelerating economic growth, fiscal consolidation, extension of employment, fight with base erosion, funding of the real economic sector, contribution to international development. They were reflected in the Framework for Strong, Sustainable, and Balanced Growth. The G20 Leaders' Declaration, the St Petersburg development strategy to contribute to low-income countries, as well as the St Petersburg strategic framework anti-corruption programme were also adopted as a result of the meeting. The lack of alternative in the strict adherence to the liabilities undertaken in December 2010 on quotas and the IMF management reform was confirmed. The results of the summit meeting evidence of the demand for the G20 not only by the countries, which are party to it, but also for the entire international community. In general, the G20 presidency of our country confirmed the ability of Russia to play a weighty role in the resolution of fundamental problems of modern development.

Russia also actively participated in the work of other informal global management structures. It contributed to the reinforcement of BRICS. The community of positions on the most acute issues of the global policy – the Syrian crisis, Iran's Nuclear Programme, Middle East peace process, WMD non-proliferation problem was fixed at the summit in Durban (26-27 March). A progress in the development of the BRICS development strategy was achieved. At the Russian initiative, the process to prepare the Strategy of multilateral economic cooperation between BRICS member states was launched. The talks on the creation of the Development Bank and the BRICS currency reserve pool are going on successfully.

Within the framework of its membership in the G8, Russia acted in the interests to search for ways of political and diplomatic settlement of international problems on the basis of multilateral approaches, actively participated in the development of agreed positions in respect of WMD non-proliferation, fight against terrorism, transnational organised crime and drug business, as well as the development of joint initiatives in the social-economic and humanitarian sector. Final documents of the G8 summit in Lough Erne (17-18 June) formalise the acknowledgement of the leading role of the UN in the issues of fighting terrorism, we managed to come to balanced formulations on basic elements of the settlement of the situation in Syria. The political potential, which was accumulated in the period of the Russian presidency of the G20 will be used during the forthcoming Russia's presidency of the G8 in 2014.

4. The leading role in the system of Russian foreign policy priorities was still devoted to the reinforcement of partner relations with countries of the Commonwealth of Independent States, promotion of integration processes in the Eurasian space.

Within this year, 20 multilateral agreements were concluded between CIS countries, heads of state and government of the Commonwealth adopted more than 50 decisions to stimulate all directions of interstate cooperation, primarily economic. A protocol on the application of a Free Trade Zone Agreement of 18 October 2010 was signed on the 31 May in Minsk by its parties and the Republic of Uzbekistan.

In the context of the solution of the task to form the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) by 1 January 2015, the contractual legal framework of the Customs Union (CU) and the Common Economic Space (CES) of Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan was codified as scheduled, we continued to develop the draft EAEU agreement. To ensure freedom of movement of goods, services, capitals and workforce within the framework of the CU and the CES, heads of state of the "troika" agreed on the procedure of stage-by-stage removal of existing barriers to access of national businessmen to markets of their countries. We organised work on practical aspects of Armenia's and Kyrgyzstan's accession to the Customs Union. The negotiation process on modalities of the tree trade agreement (FTA) between CU member states and the European Free Trade Association and the development of a similar agreement with New Zealand developed further. The negotiations to conclude a FTA between CU countries and Vietnam started in March.

The cooperation within the framework of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) received a new impulse. Measures to build up the potential of the CSTO's Collective Rapid Reaction Force (CRRF) were adopted. Mechanisms to prepare CSTO's peacekeeping forces were worked out. Within this year, several joint statements on the most topical issues of international agenda were adopted, among which there is prevention of the armament race in outer space, the situation in Syria and around it, counteracting to the Afghan drug threat. On the 23 September the presidency of the Organisation passed to Russia.

The interaction of Russia and Belarus remained intensive both within the framework of the Union State, and in CU and CES formats. In 2013, the contractual legal framework of relations was allocated to new regulation areas such as joint use of GLONASS system, international information security, military and technical cooperation. Trade and economic ties were reinforced, bilateral investment projects, the largest of which was the construction of the Belorussian nuclear power plant, which started on the 17 November, developed further. Joint strategic military training exercises West 2013 were organised in the territory of the two countries in September. At the session of the Supreme State Council of the Union State (Moscow, 25 December), the Programme of agreed actions in the foreign policy area on 2014-2015, the Agreement on the increase of efficiency of cooperation in the area of fighting corruption, the Agreement on cooperation in the area of ensuring international information security, the Agreement on the implementation of the programme of military and technical cooperation until 2020 were signed.

The multi-format interaction with Kazakhstan was trustworthy. We supported an intensive political dialogue, a new basic Agreement between the Russian Federation and the Republic of Kazakhstan on neighbourly relations and alliance in the XXI century was signed on the 11 November.

5. Russian-Ukrainian relations has reached an exclusively responsible stage. In conditions of the aspiration to set up more close contacts with the European Union marked by Kiev, Russia respected sovereignty of Ukraine, strictly adhered to the practice of non-interference into internal affairs of the neighbour state. The agreements signed on the 17 December during the 6th session of the Russian-Ukrainian interstate commission open up good prospects of setting up real strategic partnership on the basis of consideration of each other's interests.

6. Russia used targeted efforts in the context of the search of political and diplomatic resolution of conflicts in the CIS space.

The steps undertaken by Russians within the framework of the Nagorny Karabakh settlement were undertaken in close interaction with other states co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group (France and the United States). A principled agreement on the renewal of Azerbaijani-Armenian contacts at summit level was reached thanks to the joint efforts.

In the status of a guarantor country and a mediator in the Transnistria peace process in Russia, Russia contributed to set up a dialogue between Kishinev and Tiraspol, contributed to the implementation of specific trust measures between parties to the conflict within the framework of the 5+2 format.

7. The course to overcome the crisis in Russian-Georgian relations was continued. Within the framework of the dialogue on ways of normalising bilateral ties, we managed to coordinate conditions of return to the Russian market of several Georgian products, renewal of motor transport communications, to activate cultural, sports and religious contacts. The Russian Federation extended the practice of issue of visas to Georgian nationals to support kinship relations.

Within the framework of Geneva discussions on issues of security and stability in Transcaucasia, consistent efforts to create preconditions for the conclusion of a legally binding agreement about non-use of force between Georgia, on the one part, and Abkhazia and South Ossetia, on the other hand, were undertaken. Russia continued to provide help to Tskinval and Sukhum to restore their social and economic potential.

8. The EU-Russia summit (Yekaterinburg, 3-4 June) and the meeting in the format of the Government of the Russian Federation – European Commission (Moscow, 21-22 March) confirmed the strategic nature of relations between the Russian Federation and the European Union. The mutual disposition to the activation of the work on a new basic agreement was confirmed. Steps to develop cooperation in priority areas, including liberalisation of the visa regime, energy, trade, prevention and liquidation of consequences of natural and man-made disasters were marked. Russia aspired to use the potential of the Partnership for Modernisation initiative for more effective use of sectorial dialogues with the European Union. November gave start to the "Russia-EU Year of Science". The process of conclusion of bilateral executive protocols to the EU-Russia Readmission Agreement of 25 May 2006 with member states of the European Union. The contractual legal framework of interaction in the area of fighting illegal turnover of drugs was supplemented by the EU-Russia Agreement on the control of drug precursors (Yekaterinburg, 4 June).

The implementation of the roadmap of cooperation until 2050 signed on the 21 March by coordinators of the EU-Russia Energy Dialogue will contribute to the creation of the combined European energy complex. Within the framework of the practical implementation of the South Stream project, the construction of the Bulgarian (October) and Serbian (November) sections of the gas line was launched. At the same time, Russians were forced to consistently avert the attempts of partners to impose their own legal standards in the area of energy, including violation of internationals agreements.

The relations with the Federal Republic of Germany were of strategic nature, topical issues of international and bilateral agenda were discussed sincerely, including the outlines of the new security architecture in the European continent, which can ensure unity of Europe without dividing lines and on the basis of respect for legal rights of all the people populating it. The strategic partnership between Russia and France fully preserved its significance. A joint session of the foreign and defence ministers of Russia and Italy was held in Rome on the 6 August, which confirmed the mutual disposition for gradual development of cooperation in the political, economic, military and technical areas in the area of strategic partnership. Our interaction with the United Kingdom was constructive. New mechanisms for our bilateral relations – the Strategic dialogue in the format of the meeting between foreign and defence ministers and the High-Level Energy Dialogue – started to work successfully.

9. In their contacts with the North Atlantic Treaty Organization and its key members at all levels, Russians consistently brought partners to further steps to increase predictability and trust in NATO-Russia relations, including through mutual extension of the practice of voluntary exchange of information on training exercises and training events. During the negotiations between foreign ministers (Brussels, 23 April and 4 December) and defence ministers (Brussels, 23 October) of NATO-Russia Council (NRC) member states, they discussed ways of advancement to the implementation of the decisions to come to a common space of peace, security and stability in the European Atlantic region, which were adopted at the NRC summit in Lisbon (2010). We continued interaction with the organisation in the Afghan direction, including taking into account the reformatting of the NATO operation in Afghanistan after the forthcoming withdrawal of the International Security Assistance Force from the territory of the country.

10. During the 20th session of the OSCE Foreign Ministers Council in Kiev of the 5 December, we agreed a valuable document on the development of the Helsinki Plus 40 process, which sets out landmarks to prepare to 40 years of the Helsinki Final Act (2015). In the decisions adopted at the meeting, we managed to reflect several positions important for the Russian party – on the problem of non-proliferation of WMD, small arms and light weapons. A breakthrough document was approved "Initial set of OSCE confidence-building measures to reduce the risks of conflict stemming from the use of information and communication technologies", which defined for the first time the general "rules of the game" in the information area in the space from Vancouver to Vladivostok. To correct discrepancies in the work of the Organisation, Russians made specific propositions to reform it, including to develop the charter, to set up the practice of elections observation and the activity of field presences, interaction with NGOs.

11. Russia aspired to build up the relations with the United States of America on the basis of principles of equality, non-interference into internal affairs of each other and consideration of each other's interests, highlighted the readiness to set up a partner dialogue with the degree of intensity, for which Washington will be ready. Russia spoke in favour of maximum build-up of trade and investment ties and the transition to the visa-free regime of mutual travels of nationals, which would contribute to the development of the entire set of Russian-American interaction.

Russia tried to get guarantees that the global ABM system of the United States is not directed against our country and wished to remove other irritants from our bilateral relations, including insistent attempts of extraterritorial application of American law in respect of Russian nationals, state and private companies and credit organisations. Russia assumes that the progress of the settlement of the situation around Iran's Nuclear Programme should contribute to the rethinking of the US concept of the creation of the ABM system in Europe, because there will be no reason, which was used to justify the need to create it.

12. Russian-Chinese relations of comprehensive equal trustworthy partnership and strategic interaction received a dynamic development in all directions. A fruitful political dialogue on topical international problems was built up. There were three meetings between heads of state (in March, June and September), visits and talks at different level. We had joint military and naval (July) and antiterrorist (August) training exercises. China was one of key foreign trade partners of Russia. The programme of bilateral cultural and humanitarian cooperation was implemented successfully.

13. We had a multidimensional dialogue with India within the ambit of special privileged strategic partnership, supported trustworthy exchange of opinions in a broad range of issues in the UN and on other international stages. There were negotiations between the President of the Russian Federation and the Indian Prime Minister (Moscow, 21 October), multiple contacts within the ambit of different ministries and agencies, parliamentary diplomacy was developing. The military and technical cooperation was dynamic, we organised training exercises for land forces of the two countries in October. Scientific, technical and cultural ties were developing.

14. Russia built up efforts to deepen Russia's integration into the Asia-Pacific region (APR), which becomes a driver of the global economic growth. Consistent steps were undertaken to dynamically insert Russia into regional integration processes for the purposes of stimulating innovative and modernisation development of the country, primarily the accelerated rise of Siberia and the Far East. Within the framework of multilateral structures and forums and in the bilateral format, we drew the line to form an equal, out-of-bloc and transparent security architecture into the APR on the basis of principles of indivisibility of security, commitment to international law, non-confrontation defence of national interests.

The approval of the Russian (jointly with the PRC and Brunei) initiative to develop principles of security building in the APR at the 8th EAS summit (Brunei, October) contributed to the creation of conditions to conduct the first expert consultations on this topic (Brunei, November.

We continued to fill our ties with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) with practical content. Specific steps in this direction were coordinated at the meeting between foreign ministers (July) and ministers of economics (August) in Brunei. A work programme to implement the roadmap of the Russia-ASEAN trade, economic and investment cooperation was adopted. Within the framework of ASEAN Regional Forum for security (ARF) at Russia's initiative, we started to prepare a work plan to ensure cyber security in the region. During the Second Meeting between ASEAN defence ministers with dialogue partners (ADMM-Plus) in Brunei (August) agreements to extend regional military cooperation were agreed upon.

Our relations of comprehensive strategic partnership with Vietnam had a noticeable advancement. During the official visit of the President of the Russian Federation to Hanoi on the 12 November, agreements to activate cooperation in many different directions were reached.

The Japanese Prime Minister made his first official visit to the Russian Federation within the last ten years (28-30 April), which resulted in a joint statement on development of cooperation. Against the backdrop of reinforcement of the positive atmosphere in our bilateral relations, the first round of 2+2 dialogue was held in November, consultations on the problem of conclusion of a peace treaty were renewed. Our multilateral trade and investment cooperation was extended. On the 29 April, intergovernmental agreement on the establishment and activity of cultural centres was signed.

15. Thanks to solidary efforts of Russia and other member states, the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) continued to assert itself as a weighty factor of peace and stability in Asia. Common approaches to the issues of ensuring security and sustainable development in the SCO space were confirmed during the joint events at summit and high level formalised in the Bishkek Declaration on the 13 September and the Action plan for 2013-2017 to implement provisions of the Agreement on Long-Term Neighbourly Relations, Friendship and Cooperation between SCO States.

16. Bilaterally, as well as in interaction with CSTO and SCO partners, within the ambit of the UN and NARO-Russia Council, the Russian Federation consistently pursued a policy of providing comprehensive assistance to the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan to establish it as a peaceful, independent, neutral state, which is able to counteract terrorism threats, fight against drug business and organised crime. The decision of the CSTO Parliamentary Assembly Council (St Petersburg, April) about provision of an observer status at the Assembly to the delegation of Afghanistan became a new step in this direction.

17. We undertook consistent efforts to strengthen relations with African continent states, their regional and sub-regional structures. The participation of the President of the African Union, Ethiopian Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn and the President of the Heads of State and Government Implementation Committee of the New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD), President of Senegal Macky Sall contributed to the activation of the political dialogue. Practical steps to develop traditionally friendly relations with African states were made. During the BRICS summit in South Africa (Durban, 26-27 March), we signed a declaration on the establishment of comprehensive strategic partnership with South Africa.

The Russian Federation as a permanent member of the UN Security Council participated in the unblocking of crisis situations in the continent. We provided addressed humanitarian aid to Mali, Somalia, Ethiopia and some other countries, including within the ambit of the UNDP, the WHO and UNIDO.

18. Multiple bilateral contacts at summit and high level contributed to the promotion of mutually beneficial multidimensional partnership relations with states of Latin America and the Caribbean. We made steps in the interests to increase the dynamics of cooperation with integration associations of the region. Within the framework of our official visit to Moscow on the 29 May, foreign ministers of the extended "troika" of the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (SELAC) reached an agreement to create a mechanism of political consultations in the Russia-SELAC formats.

19. We conducted consistent and active politics in the Arctic region. Russia participated in the implementation of multilateral projects (more than 80) in the region. At the eighth ministerial session of the Arctic Council (Sweden, Kiruna, 15 May) at Russia's initiative we signed the second in history legally binding panarctic document – Agreement on Cooperation on Marine Oil Pollution Preparedness and Response in the Arctic. Russia was the organiser of the third meeting of high representatives of member states of the Arctic Council (Salekhard, 9-11 April) and the third International Arctic Forum "The Arctic – Territory of Dialogue" (Salekhard, 24-25 September). The session of the Arctic Council at heads of Headquarters level (Denmark, 12 June) contributed to the strengthening of military cooperation and extension of the agenda in the security area.

20. Actions of the Russian diplomacy in the cultural and humanitarian direction activated. We continued to implement the concept "Principle directions of Russian Federation policy in the area of international cultural and humanitarian cooperation". We signed respective intergovernmental agreements with Macedonia, Republic of Korea, Romania, Turkey and Japan. The network of Russian Centres for Science and Culture extended. We implemented a set of steps aimed at the reinforcement of cultural and information presence of Russia in the world (topical bilateral years, Days of Russia in foreign countries, the programme within the framework of the Forum of Slavic Cultures, events related to memorable historical dates). The Federal Target Programme "Russian Language" for 2011-2015 was implemented without disruptions. Draft state concepts of support of Russian abroad and "Russian School Abroad" were improved.

Interaction with Russian expatriates, including within the ambit of the Fund to Support and Protect the Rights of Compatriots Living Abroad, consolidation of the Russian world was an important direction of our foreign policy activities. The Global thematic conference "Nationals and their contribution to the world culture" (Moscow, 29-30 October) was a central event of the year.

In interaction with international and regional organisations, using different discussion arenas and dialogue mechanisms, Russia played an active role in the process of searching uniting ideas to build up harmonic intercivilizational and intercultural relations in the world, assuming that we need to conduct this work on the basis of traditional values, which have been forming the spiritual and moral foundations of the global civilisation for many years of history. Within the framework of the V Alliance of Civilizations Forum (Vienna, 25 February – 1 March), we adopted decisions on new milestones in the activity of this international initiative acting under the aegis of the UN Secretary-General. The XI annual session of the World Public Forum "Dialogue of Civilizations" with participation of representatives from 60 countries (Rhodes, 6 October) was devoted to the search of non-violent ways to settle conflicts.