The Deputy Speaker of the Federation Council had meetings with representatives from Cuba, Transnistria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, the UAE, PARLACEN, Qatar, and Equatorial Guinea.
Deputy Speaker of the Federation Council Konstantin Kosachev held a series of bilateral meetings on the sidelines of the Fourth Eurasian Women’s Forum.
During the meeting with Vice-President of the National Assembly of People’s Power of the Republic of Cuba Ana María Mari Machado, Konstantin Kosachev said that Russia and Cuba shared a sincere and friendly relationship which has stood the test of time. “The relations between our two countries have special strategic importance,” he pointed out.
“Over the past several years, we created a favourable environment for further developing our relations, including economic ties, and the parliaments have been accompanying the efforts of the two governments by exercising their oversight functions,” Konstantin Kosachev noted, adding that the two countries have forged close inter-parliamentary ties.
The Deputy Speaker went on to say that the Federation Council was proactive in its efforts to promote ties with Cuba in various domains, including through the friendship group headed by Andrei Shevchenko, Chair of the Federation Council Committee on Federal Structure, Regional Policy, Local Government and Northern Affairs. “We will continue promoting Russia-Cuba relations in all their aspects, including by stepping up region-to-region ties,” Konstantin Kosachev said.
The Federation Council’s Deputy Speaker praised Cuba for its commitment to working with BRICS.
In her remarks at the meeting, Ana María Mari Machado reaffirmed her commitment to strengthening the existing relations. “We are grateful to Russia for its assistance and support. This is something we will always remember,” she pointed out.
The meeting’s agenda covered trade, economic and financial cooperation, as well as parliamentary oversight regarding the agreements in these domains. The participants also discussed bilateral and multilateral interactions within the Inter-Parliamentary Union.
Konstantin Kosachev also had a meeting with Governor (Bashkan) of the Autonomous Territorial Unit of Gagauzia Evghenia Guțul to discuss the political situation in the Republic of Moldova ahead of the October presidential election.
Evghenia Guțul talked about efforts to preserve the autonomy’s independence and cultural identity, saying that Gagauzia remained proactive and committed to stepping up its constructive dialogue with Russia regardless of all the artificial barriers and obstacles created by the current Chisinau regime and the challenging geopolitical landscape.
Konstantin Kosachev pointed out that Russia is making every effort to improve the dire socioeconomic situation for the people of Gagauzia.
Konstantin Kosachev also had a meeting with Prime Minister of Republika Srpska (Bosnia and Herzegovina) Srebrenka Golić. Yelena Afanaseva, member of the Federation Council Committee on Foreign Affairs and Head of the Federation Council’s cooperation group with the National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia also took part in the meeting.
“We view Republika Srpska as one of Russia’s key and reliable partners in the Balkans, and support efforts to expand its cooperation with Russia,” Konstantin Kosachev pointed out.
He said that certain Western countries persisted in pushing for revising the 1995 Dayton Accords by eliminating the broad authority it gives to the Bosnian Serbs and Republika Srpska, reformatting Bosnia and Herzegovina as a unitary state dominated by the Bosnian Muslim majority and fast-tracking the country’s rapprochement with the EU and NATO.
Yelena Afanaseva talked about stepping up inter-parliamentary contacts as an effective way of enabling the Russian Federation to forge closer ties with Republika Srpska and strengthening the Slavic world.
In her remarks, Srebrenka Golić talked about the positive attitude towards Russia in Republika Srpska and its commitment to expanding cooperation in all its aspects. She also thanked Russia for supporting Republika Srpska at international organisations.
The meeting’s agenda covered a wide range of matters dealing with the domestic politics in Bosnia and Herzegovina, including the Republika Srpska’s financial and economic blockade, human rights, and the municipal elections which are scheduled to take place in Bosnia and Herzegovina in early October.
The participants in the meeting paid special attention to humanitarian, educational and cultural matters with Srebrenka Golić reaffirming that students from Republika Srpska were eager to enrol in Russian higher education institutions.
During his meeting with Second Deputy Speaker of the Federal National Council of the United Arab Emirates Maryam Majid bin Theneya, Konstantin Kosachev said that Russia-UAE relations operate as a strategic partnership and have been gaining traction despite the challenging international environment.
The participants in the meeting agreed that religious and cultural diversity cannot stand in the way of constructive dialogue, and the events held as part of the Fourth Eurasian Women’s Forum served as a perfect illustration of this fact.
Konstantin Kosachev’s conversation with Maryam Majid bin Theneya included the discussion of the situation around the Ukraine crisis.
During Konstantin Kosachev’s talks with Vice President of the Central American Parliament (PARLACEN) Ana Lisseth Arias Hernandez, the agenda revolved around the commitment among Central American countries to strengthen their partnerships with the Russian Federation.
“We feel the growing interest in stepping up ties with Russia from countries in this subregion, and welcome PARLACEN’s commitment to forge closer inter-parliamentary ties,” Konstantin Kosachev said. He went on to reaffirm the Federation Council’s readiness to further reinforce these contacts. “The Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation signed a Cooperation Agreement with PARLACEN in 2019. Therefore, we expect this structure to work closely with both the State Duma and the Federation Council,” he pointed out.
In her remarks, Ana Lisseth Arias Hernandez talked about PARLACEN’s activities in Central America.
During the conversation, the participants in the meeting reaffirmed their commitment to continuing their constructive cooperation, including on the peaceful use of nuclear energy, civilian space programmes, energy, healthcare, as well as stepping up efforts to promote the women’s agenda. They also discussed opportunities for Russia to partake in PARLACEN’s work as an observer.
Konstantin Kosachev held a meeting with Deputy Speaker of Qatar’s Shura Council Hamda bint Hassan Al-Sulaiti to stress the importance of promoting inter-parliamentary contacts between the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation and the Consultative Assembly of Qatar, also known as the Shura Council.
“Our delegations have been effective in working together on international parliamentary platforms, in particular, within the Inter-Parliamentary Union. Still, we have yet to step up our bilateral contacts and must hold more meetings, including using the latest communications technology,” the Federation Council’s Deputy Speaker said.
Hamda bint Hassan Al-Sulaiti responded by describing the Russia-Qatar inter-parliamentary ties as being positive and stable. The Shura Council’s Deputy Speaker spoke out in favour of inter-parliamentary coordination ahead of major international events, including within inter-parliamentary friendship groups.
The meeting’s agenda also included the discussion of the situation in the Middle East and the Ukraine crisis in its humanitarian aspects.
On a separate note, the two parliamentarians discussed economic cooperation and bilateral tourist flows.
Konstantin Kosachev called on Qatar to make better use of the mechanisms offered by the joint bilateral Commission on Trade, Economic and Technical Cooperation.
The participants agreed to breathe new life into the commission’s work, and to be more active within the framework of inter-parliamentary friendship groups, as well as to hold a meeting of the corresponding parliamentary committees in order to touch base ahead of the Inter-Parliamentary Union Assembly in Geneva.
Konstantin Kosachev talked about the high level of bilateral cooperation during his meeting with Vice President of the Senate of the Republic of Equatorial Guinea Angelina Ada Ondo.
“We stand together as advocates of a multipolar world order, reject any dictate and double standards in international relations, and call for recognising that nations across the world must be able to trace their own development path. Russia is proactive in its efforts to make an African comeback. We must realise our mutual commitment to forging closer inter-parliamentary ties and outline our priorities. We are open to working together with you,” Konstantin Kosachev said.
Angelina Ada Ondo delivered a message to Speaker of the Federation Council Valentina Matvienko from President of the Senate of the Republic of Equatorial Guinea Maria Teresa Efua Asangono.