Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov’s remarks at the international interparty conference Eurasian Choice as a Basis for Strengthening Sovereignty, Moscow, December 14, 2022

Colleagues,

Friends.

Thank you for inviting me to speak at the international interparty conference Eurasian Choice as a Basis for Strengthening Sovereignty organised by the United Russia political party.

I am pleased to note that United Russia and other domestic parties are supporting constructive, large-scale and comradely cooperation with dozens of public and political structures from the CIS countries. This reflects the bonds of friendship and rich traditions of mutual support, trust and respect between our countries and peoples.

Neighbourliness and the geopolitical advantages of our common continent of Eurasia are particularly needed when our countries are resolving the tasks of domestic development in unprecedentedly difficult international conditions. The main reason for today’s growing tensions is the stubborn striving of the collective West to maintain a historically diminishing domination in the international arena by any means it can. After more than 500 years of “ordering the tune” in the world, it is difficult to give up this privilege, but life is taking its toll and the objective formation of a multi-polar world will inevitably lead to specific changes in the international arena. It is necessary to prepare for this. This process is being translated into practical deeds. It is impossible to impede the strengthening of the independent centres of economic growth, financial might and political influence. They are emerging on our common continent of Eurasia, in Latin America, the Middle East and Africa.

Naturally, the countries that began to develop rapidly after a long period of what used to be called “backwardness,” are taking measures to strengthen their sovereignty and are upholding their lawful positions in the world. They are doing this on the basis of respect and development of their cultural and civilisation identity. This is what the West is trying “to cancel. It is trying to assert, in the modern world, what was called “the end of history” after the disappearance of the USSR, when the liberal model of statehood was declared the only correct path for humanity. The countries are not rejecting the many Western cultural achievements, but they do not want to live according to foreign patterns. Everyone wants respect. I believe this is the basis of the current development period.

In terms of practical moves, we see the focus of the world economy and, therefore, world politics continue to shift from the Euro-Atlantic region to Eurasia. The European Union can no longer claim political and economic leadership or a monopoly on values in the vast Eurasian space. The same is true of NATO, despite its ceaseless attempts to monopolise the role of guarantor of security, and not only in Europe. They have also taken a shot at global dominance. At its June summit in Madrid, NATO announced its global responsibility for security in the whole world and put forward a new concept of indivisible security in the Euro-Atlantic region, as well as in the Asian-Pacific region, which the NATO member countries and the whole West call the Indo-Pacific region as they blatantly try to add an anti-China angle to their actions in this part of the world. They do not hide it. 

Our American and European colleagues have started archaic zero-sum games through their geopolitical “engineers.” Those intrigues and risky ventures helped them for many years to transform Ukraine into “anti-Russia,” as Vladimir Putin said, by eradicating the Russian language, culture, education and the media, while simultaneously encouraging the efforts to introduce, via legislation, neo-Nazi practices and ideals into the theory and practice of the Ukrainian state. Such activities that we have seen all these years in Ukraine were part of the policy of NATO, primarily the Americans, aimed at creating direct military threats to the security of the Russian Federation on the territory of Ukraine.  

All of this led to the decision, which had no alternative, to begin the special military operation. Russian President Vladimir Putin has talked about this in detail on more than one occasion, including in his recent video address to participants in a meeting of the SCO and CIS defence ministers on December 9, 2022. The president said then: “The West has been shamelessly draining and exploiting Ukraine’s resources for years, while encouraging genocide and terror in Donbass, in fact turning that country into a colony.”

Russia was forced to implement absolutely inevitable measures aiming to defend the principles formalised by the UN Charter and numerous OSCE decisions. They state that no country has the right to strengthen its security at the expense of others. This is exactly what the West is doing. The very same OSCE decisions, passed by consensus at the highest level, say that no country or organisation in the OSCE region can claim the right to dominate this region. NATO members are directly violating this principle.

Objective tectonic processes are taking place in Eurasia while the West is frantically trying to preserve its domination contrary to political obligations and norms of the UN Charter which state the need to respect the sovereign equality of states. It is trying to blackmail, resort to direct threats and ultimatums and to subordinate all members of the international community without exception to global dictate. The continent’s countries now have an opportunity to freely choose different development models and foreign partners as well as to take part in mutually enriching integration projects. It is hardly surprising that the tasks stipulating a conversion to formats not affected by negative, artificial and restrictive foreign influence are now coming to the fore.  This concerns the introduction of mutual settlements in alternative currencies substituting the dollar and euro, the creation of an infrastructure and economic ties that are not controlled by the West, including contacts between banks. This concerns all aspects facilitating the operation of the economic system.

This work is underway in many spheres. This is a shared agenda for all post-Soviet organisations, now represented by the delegates of the relevant states’ parties. This concerns the Russia-Belarus Union State, which is currently implementing 28 economic integration programmes, facilitating close foreign policy coordination, defending a common interpretation of historical events and a common perception of our nations’ future.

The Eurasian Economic Union ranks among the most dynamically developing regional associations. Today, the EAEU brings together about 185 million consumers. The GDP of EAEU member states is over $2 trillion.  It is necessary to start keeping statistical records in other currencies, but we continue to count in dollars through sheer inertia. I am convinced that this will end soon.

EAEU countries are working jointly to reduce the negative impact of unilateral sanctions that have been imposed by the United States and its European satellites and to make their economies more resilient in the face of foreign interference. The EAEU’s top priorities include efforts to ensure food security, create logistics chains and implement cooperation projects. Energy security is becoming more and more vital. The legal entities of our countries, including Russia and its Central Asian partners, are conducting substantive talks on this issue. We are promoting the climate and digital agendas and working to eliminate trade barriers.

Broad international ties are proof of the EAEU’s efficiency and relevance. The Union has signed free trade agreements with Vietnam and Singapore and is negotiating such agreements with Iran and Egypt. Talks are scheduled to start on preferential trade with India, Indonesia and the UAE. Relevant contacts are maintained with Israel, and there is a joint research group on the expediency of signing a free trade agreement with Mongolia.

I would like to point out the Union’s constructive dialogue with China based on the solid foundation of two agreements on trade and economic cooperation. The Eurasian Economic Commission, which is the Union’s supra-national agency, has signed memorandums of understanding with ASEAN and the SCO and is developing integration ties in Latin America and Africa. It is an extremely promising process.

In 2023, Russia will take over the rotating EAEU chairmanship. We are resolved to promote an integration agenda at all levels and in all areas.

We are interested in strengthening multifaceted cooperation within the framework of the CIS, which has no rivals today as a versatile regional integration association in terms of membership and cooperation forms and areas. Its importance will continue to increase in today’s realities. The CIS has the largest mandate possible today, which makes it possible to address virtually any issue, from politics and the economy to security, culture and education.

We are working with our partners to prevent the decline of the CIS cooperation mechanisms, which have so far been working extremely constructively. This has to do with the Treaty on a Free Trade Area between the member states, the transport and logistics infrastructure, and increasingly broader use of national currencies in mutual settlements. We will promote the establishment of new export-import channels and multimodal transport corridors.

We attach particular importance to building up cultural cooperation among CIS member states. In this context, I would like to mention the important unifying role of the Russian language. Ahead of 2023, which has been declared the Year of Russian as a Language of Interethnic Communication in the CIS, the CIS heads of government approved an action plan for holding the year in a decision they adopted on October 28, 2022.

We have wholeheartedly supported the initiative of President of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev to create an international organisation for supporting and promoting the Russian language across the world. The concept of its establishment under the CIS umbrella was approved at the CIS summit held in Astana on October 14. We believe that it should be a financially independent multilateral organisation headquartered in a Russian city and that its potential participants should represent many countries, and not only the CIS. We see that there is interest in such an organisation in many other parts of the world.

The Shanghai Cooperation Organisation is a bright example of mutually beneficial and equal partnership in Eurasia. Like BRICS, the SCO is a model of multilateral diplomacy where countries with different political and economic systems and unique cultural values and civilisational platforms are effectively cooperating in various spheres. There are 18 member states, observer countries and dialogue partners in the SCO Family, and more countries are interested in strengthening and formalising their ties with the SCO.

The CSTO remains an integral factor of regional stability. Its peacekeeping forces’ effective actions to assist Kazakhstan in stabilising its domestic political situation in January 2022 became clear evidence of the organisation’s maturity and high reliability.

Considering the processes of Eurasian integration, I would also note China’s Belt and Road Initiative, which is aligned with the EAEU strategy and the national development strategies of most Eurasian countries. ASEAN’s position is growing stronger, and that association is Russia’s strategic partner.

In long-term planning, the objective priority is to align various integration initiatives implemented in Eurasia. We strongly believe that economic ties should provide the foundations on which the architecture of peace, security and mutual trust will rest in the future. This is the underlying philosophy of President Vladimir Putin’s Greater Eurasian Partnership concept, which includes the alignment of processes underway in the EAEU, the SCO, and ASEAN. At the same time, it leaves the door open for any countries or supranational groups on our vast common continent without exception who wish to join it. We appreciate the special interest that our Chinese and Indian friends have shown in this initiative.

In the logic of the Greater Eurasian Partnership, we are working to upgrade and increase the capacity of the Trans-Siberian and Baikal-Amur railways, to develop the North-South and Europe-Western China international transport corridors, as well as the transport and logistics infrastructure of the Azov-Black Sea and Caspian regions. These efforts will create the material framework for Greater Eurasia.

We realise that implementing these ambitious undertakings will take time and, most importantly, political will, wisdom and foresight, as well as significant human and financial resources. The effort aimed at creating a stable pan-continental space of practical economic cooperation, as well as equal and indivisible security, must be continued taking into account the cultural and civilisational features of all Eurasian nations. The involvement of representatives of political parties and other public associations in the relevant processes is very important. This far-reaching project should benefit not only the countries of Eurasia, but the whole world, giving it a new and powerful driver of steady growth.

Colleagues,

There is no doubt that the results of your conference will include these and many other issues of our coexistence and cooperation in Eurasia, will contribute to a fuller use of the potential of party diplomacy in the interests of ensuring peace and prosperity in the Eurasian space.

I would like to wish you rewarding work and all the best.