Dmitriy Kobitskiy welcomes the participants of the V session of the Russian-Turkish Public Forum

The opening ceremony of the V session of the Russian-Turkish Public Forum, which is taking place on 10–13 July in St. Petersburg, was held in the Tavricheskiy Palace – the IPA CIS headquarters.

The event brought together over 250 representatives of expert community, business circles and academia from both countries, including more than 30 rectors of Russian and Turkish universities. Head of the Federal Agency for the Commonwealth of Independent States Affairs, Compatriots Living Abroad, and International Humanitarian Cooperation (Rossotrudichestvo) Eleonora Mitrofanova and member of the Great National Assembly of the Turkish Republic Ahmet Berat Çonkara co-chaired the session.

Secretary General – Head of the IPA CIS Council Secretariat Dmitriy Kobitskiy addressed the participants with a welcoming speech, noting that the IPA CIS consistently advocated the strengthening of cooperation in various formats, including in civil society, the development of projects for political, cultural and humanitarian cooperation among nations.

Dmitriy Kobitskiy also stressed that the IPA CIS had built close ties with a number of international organizations where the Great National Assembly of Turkey had participated as a member, including the Parliamentary Assembly of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Mediterranean, the Inter-Parliamentary Union and the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe. The Secretary General invited the participants to take part in the international conference “Future of European Security” to take place in the Tavricheskiy Palace in 2020 coincided with the 75^th anniversary of the II World War – the crucial event for Turkey, Russia and other Commonwealth States.

The session was also attended by the deputy Secretaries General – Plenipotentiary Representatives: of the National Assembly of the Republic of Belarus – Viktor Kogut, the Parliament of the Republic of Moldova – Ion Lipciu, the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation – Irina Sokolova and the Majlisi Oli of the Republic of Tajikistan – Ibod Rakhimov.