The 137 th Assembly of the Inter-Parliamentary Union kicked off in St. Petersburg

Vladimir Putin delivered a speech at the opening ceremony of the 137^thAssembly of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU). He stressed that this forum gathered the biggest number of people in the Union’s 128-year history: more than 160 delegations, with 96 speakers among them, and 2,400 participants.

“Colleagues, it is our common interest to promote a peaceful, creative and balanced agenda, to reduce strife, prevent the emergence of new separating lines, including ethnic and religious ones, jointly move towards shaping a more just and solid architecture of international relations. I am convinced that the overwhelming majority of parliamentarians share this approach,” noted Vladimir Putin. .

President of the Inter-Parliamentary Union Saber Chowdhury, the speakers of the chambers the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation, the host parliament, –: Speaker of the Federation Council Valentina Matvienko and Speaker of the State Duma Vyacheslav Volodin, and UN Under-Secretary-General Yury Fedotov also addressed the opening ceremony

In her speech, IPA CIS Council Chairperson Valentina Matvienko noted the importance of parliamentary diplomacy especially its role as the only way to maintain a peaceful dialogue, when traditional diplomatic processes fail." The mission of parliamentarians is to negotiate," she said. "From us – parliamentarians - people expect actions, practical steps that will reduce the “degree of tension on the planet”, will help restore a lasting peace, will boost economic and social progress of all countries and peoples," she added.

According to Valentina Matvienko, the synthesis of universal democratic principles and unique traditions inherent in each culture can become the basis for truly productive international cooperation. Chairperson of the IPA CIS Council Valentina Matvienko underlined that in this connection the topic of the main discussion of the137^thAssembly “Promoting cultural pluralism and peace through inter-faith and inter-ethnic dialogue” was particularly urgent.