Valentina Matvienko: Interregional cooperation is the basis of the Union State

According to Valentina Matvienko, such meetings have become a good tradition of the interregional forums. “They offer an opportunity to discuss current aspects of interregional cooperation, share experience and good practices, and talk about obstacles to the further development of our interaction,” she said. The Federation Council Speaker added that she and the speaker of the upper house of the Belarusian parliament highly appreciated this dialogue.

“Interregional cooperation is undoubtedly the basis of the Union State,” Valentina Matvienko stated. She noted that it had gathered momentum and that trade and economic ties between Russia and Belarus were developing sustainably and smoothly in many spheres.

“Our industrial, educational and humanitarian ties, as well as the implementation of high-tech projects have advanced to a fundamentally new level. Our tourism sectors are growing dynamically too. All this is largely the result of our interregional cooperation, in which all our regions are involved to one degree or another. The new regions of Russia are joining in these processes,” Valentina Matvienko pointed out.

In connection with the theme of the 12th Forum of Russian and Belarusian Regions, which is The Youth of Belarus and Russia – Heirs to the Great Victory and the Future of the Union State, the Federation Council Speaker expressed gratitude to the Russian and Belarusian regions that hosted the Undefeated patriotic youth event and the Memory Train project. Valentina Matvienko pointed out that such humanitarian cooperation was no less important in the current conditions than economic projects.

She also spoke about the potential for strengthening bilateral ties at the municipal level, citing the example of the Lipetsk Region, the first Russian region where all municipalities have established sister relations with the executive committees of the Republic of Belarus.

“Time has shown that we continue to cooperate, grow stronger and spread to new areas despite external pressure. I believe that one of the reasons for this stability is well-developed interregional cooperation, which is mutually beneficial, effective and is not restricted by any limits or barriers,” Valentina Matvienko stated in conclusion.

The Federation Council Speaker also welcomed the high representatives of the governments of Russia and Belarus, who attended the meeting. “Effective cooperation between the executive and legislative authorities is extremely important at this time,” she said.

Speaker of the Council of the Republic of the National Assembly of the Republic of Belarus Natalya Kochanova noted that the forum had become a traditional landmark event for both countries. She expressed gratitude to Governor of the Nizhny Novgorod Region Gleb Nikitin for hospitality and praised the high organisational standards of the event. She stated that the forums greatly contributed to bilateral cooperation and assured the participants that the members of the Russian and Belarusian parliaments closely monitored the implementation of the contracts and agreements signed during these forums.

Natalya Kochanova also spoke about friendly ties and constructive interaction between the governors of Russian and Belarusian regions. “The results all of us see depend on the work of regional heads and on the way in which they address their tasks,” she said. “Our governors are ready for cooperation with all Russian regions,” the speaker of the upper house of the Belarusian parliament pointed out.

Governor of the Voronezh Region Alexander Gusev stated that the region maintained efficient and fruitful economic and humanitarian ties with its partners in Belarus. “The best and most tangible result of cooperation with our Belarusian colleagues is the construction of a number of important projects in the Voronezh Region, namely, three schools, several kindergartens, a modern residential neighbourhood, and a football stadium. We have plans for several other joint projects, the agreements on which we will sign today,” he said.

Chairman of the Brest Region Executive Committee Pyotr Parkhomchik pointed out that the theme of the forum was of strategic significance for the future of Russians, Belarusians and the Union State as a whole. “We must bring up our young people on the basis of historical truth, or the initiative will be snatched by those who will provide their own version of the events,” he said. Pyotr Parkhomchik recalled that the Brest Region hosted many landmark events aimed at protecting historical memory. “Large delegations from many countries and families with children come to the Brest Hero Fortress Memorial Complex to soak up the atmosphere of that legendary place,” he said.

Governor of the Leningrad Region Alexander Drozdenko emphasised that young people are the foundation of the future development, friendship and security of both countries. “We in the Leningrad Region understand that we should employ really active forms of bringing up our young people in the spirit of patriotism and civic awareness. In our efforts in this sphere, we rely on our youth, military and patriotic, and volunteer organisations, which are educating our young people not by words but by deeds. It has become a tradition for the patriotic clubs of the Leningrad Region, Belarus and Russia to hold joint memory watches in the Leningrad Region. About a dozen regional public search parties come to our region from Belarus every year,” the Governor said.

Chairman of the Mogilev Region Council of Deputies Alexander Goroshkin noted that interregional cooperation between Russia and Belarus was gaining momentum. “Despite our achievements, we continue to search for new growth points and mutually beneficial spheres of cooperation. To date, the Mogilev Region Council of Deputies has signed 17 agreements with Russian regions, and we plan to sign one more agreement, with the Penza Region, during this forum,” he stated.

Governor of the Orel Region Andrei Klychkov believes that growing trade between the two countries calls for creating a platform to offer broader public access to information about the range of goods available in Russia and Belarus. “This would help accelerate economic ties and trade,” he said.

Chairman of the Gomel Region Executive Committee Ivan Krupko spoke about the Friendship youth camp that operated for over 60 years within the framework of the Slavic Unity festival, which will open in Gomel tomorrow. The Friendship camp brings together young people from Gomel, Bryansk and many other regions.

Head of the Donetsk People’s Republic Denis Pushilin briefed the meeting participants on building up joint efforts to combat the glorification of Nazism and the propaganda of alien moral values.

Chairman of the Grodno Region Executive Committee Yury Karayev reported on the interregional joint projects and memorial actions in which schoolchildren from Russia and Belarus took part.

Speaker of the Kherson Region Duma Tatyana Tomilina spoke about the importance of preserving historical ties between friendly countries and regions and proposed implementing several cultural and educational projects.

Chairman of the Lipetsk Region Council of Deputies Vladimir Serikov confirmed that all districts in the region had signed sister relations agreements with Belarusian regions. He also spoke about successful joint educational and search projects.

Chair of the Gomel Region Council of Deputies Yekaterina Zenkevich emphasised the importance of direct contacts between Russian and Belarusian deputies at different levels for holding substantive discussions of various issues and offering effective forms of integration.

The speakers of the upper houses of the Russian and Belarusian parliaments, Valentina Matvienko and Natalya Kochanova, and deputy speakers Yury Vorobyov and Sergei Khomenko attended the signing of cooperation documents. In particular, the Leningrad Region and the Vitebsk Region Executive Committee signed an agreement on trade, economic, scientific and technical, social and cultural cooperation. The Government of the Nizhny Novgorod Region and the Vitebsk Region Executive Committee signed a roadmap on the implementation of the bilateral agreement on trade, economic, scientific and technical, social and cultural cooperation in 2025−2027, which they signed on 28 June 2024. Agreements on cooperation were also signed between the Sakhalin Regional Duma and the Gomel Region Council of Deputies, and the Legislature of the Penza Region and the Mogilev Region Council of Deputies. The Government of the Voronezh Region and a Belarusian company signed an agreement on the construction of educational establishments in Voronezh and Aleksandrovka in the Novousmansky District (Voronezh Region), and an agreement on the construction of a kindergarten in Voronezh.

Before that, Valentina Matvienko and Natalya Kochanova held a meeting in the restricted format.

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The 12th Forum of Russian and Belarusian Regions was held in Nizhny Novgorod on 26−27 June. It was organised by the Federation Council of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation and the Council of the Republic of the National Assembly of the Republic of Belarus. The forum was attended by more than 800 delegates from 79 Russian regions and all regions of Belarus.