PABSEC Participation in the Second International Forum “Development of Parliamentarianism”, Moscow, 1-3 July 2019
The second International Forum “Development of Parliamentarianism” was held in Moscow, at the World Trade Center, on 1-3 July 2019 upon the initiative of the State Duma of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation. Representatives of 132 states, including 41 speakers of parliament, and 14 international parliamentary organizations took part in the Forum. The PABSEC was represented at this Forum by Mr. Asaf Hajiyev, PABSEC Secretary General.
At the opening of the Forum the speeches were made by Mr. Vyacheslav Volodin, Chairman of the State Duma of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation, Mrs. Valentina Matvienko, Chairperson of the Council of the Federation of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation, and Mr. Sergey Lavrov, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation. It was noted that the purpose of the Forum is to strengthen inter-parliamentary cooperation and enhance interaction among parliamentarians for balanced solutions to the common international problems.
The three-day forum was held in the format of a plenary session, three thematic sections: Section 1 – “International Security: Dialogue of Legislators for Peace and Stability”; Section 2 – “Lawmaking and the Legal Framework for the Digital Future: Challenges and Solutions "; and Section 3 – “Inter-Parliamentary Cooperation: Principles, Trends, Institutions”; and round tables (“Role of Legal Regulation in the Poverty and Inequality Reduction”; “Media Wars: How to Beat Fake News?” “Environmental Legislative Agenda: Effective Interaction for Sustainable Development”; “Role of Youth in the Development of Parliamentarism: Experience and Priorities”; International Humanitarian Law and Humanitarian Cooperation: “the Role of Parliaments and Inter-Parliamentary Institutions”). The second day of the Forum was concluded by the adoption of the Final Declaration.
At the closing of the Forum on 3 July the participants were addressed by Mr. Vladimir Putin, President of the Russian Federation. He stressed the importance of the format of the inter-parliamentary Forum and stressed the need to consolidate parliaments in elaborating common rules for the exchange and protection of information in order to create a balanced and fair world order.
In his speech within the framework of the Section “International Security: Dialogue of Legislators for Peace and Stability” the PABSEC Secretary General spoke about inter-parliamentary cooperation in the wider Black Sea Region and the existing challenges and prospects. He stressed the peculiarities of the relationship between the countries with a common history, but with different cultures, traditions and religions. He noted that the diversity is the wealth of the region and that parliamentary cooperation is aimed at turning all the peculiarities into advantages for ensuring more constructive dialogue for the implementation of major projects of global importance for the benefit of the peoples of the Region.
On the sidelines of the Forum, the PABSEC Secretary General met with the representatives of the State Duma and the international parliamentary organizations. At the meeting with Ms. Olga Timofeeva, Deputy Chairperson of the State Duma, member of the PABSEC Russian Delegation, the PABSEC Secretary General discussed the organization of the PABSEC committee meeting in Sochi in September 2019. At the Meeting with Ms. Valentina Pivnenko, First Deputy Chairperson of the State Duma Committee on Regional Policy and Problems of North and Far East and the Head of the Russian Delegation to the Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conference, Mr. Jorodd Asphjell, President of the BSPC (Norway) and Mr. Bodo Bahr, BSPC Secretary General, the PABSEC Secretary General discussed the preparatory work for the joint PABSEC-BSPC meeting in Stockholm in autumn 2019. During the Meeting with Mr. Mikhail Krotov, former Secretary General of the IPACIS, Head of Secretariat of the State Duma Committee on CIS Affairs, Eurasian Integration and Relations with Compatriots, the PABSEC Secretary General discussed the prospects of further cooperation on topical problems.