International symposium "Traditional Religions within the Context of National Unity" took place in the Tavricheskiy Palace

The Tavricheskiy Palace, the headquarters of the Interparliamentary Assembly of the CIS Member Nations, hosted the international symposium “Traditional Religions within the Context of National Unity”.

The conference was co-organized by the Presidential Council on Cooperation with Religious Organizations, Commission of the Civic Chamber of the Russian Federation on Harmonization of Interethnic and Inter-Confessional Relations, St. Petersburg Diocese of the Russian Orthodox Church, the Spiritual Board of Muslims of St. Petersburg and the North-West region, the Herzen State Pedagogical University of Russia and Autonomous Non-Profit Organization “Center for Ethno-Religious Studies”. The conference was sponsored by the Governors’ Offices of Saint Petersburg and Leningrad Oblast.

The participants discussed activities of faith-based organizations aimed at the strengthening of national unity, analyzed the measures to promote cooperation between public institutions and civil society in European and Asian countries and considered the harmonization mechanisms of ethno-religious situation, as well as on information campaigns to combat ethnic and religious extremism.