Valdai Discussion Club

2021-09-02 13:24:43 The Arctic and the Far East are unique and strategically important territories for Russia, which provide a high degree of integration into the world's transport and logistics system, opportunities for the development of new green technologies and a unique investment climate, created in recent years.

Special for Valdai Club's participation in the Eastern Economic Forum we created an infographic on global opportunities for the Far East and the Arctic. The Valdai Club session, titled “Global Challenges and Opportunities for the Far East and the Arctic”, took place on September 2 in Vladivostok.

Follow this link to find the full high-res infographic.

#EEF2021 #EEF @roscongress Open / Comment

2021-09-02 13:04:20 On Thursday, September 2, the Valdai Club held a session, titled “Global Challenges and Opportunities for the Far East and the Arctic”, within the framework of the Eastern Economic Forum.

Photo gallery of the meeting is available on our Instagram.

The video of the session will be available via this link soon.

Stay tuned! Open / Comment

2021-09-02 12:54:48 The Far East and the Arctic in a New Global Context

Almost ten years ago, Russia declared the development of the Far East a national priority for the 21st century.

On Thursday, September 2, within the framework of the Eastern Economic Forum in Vladivostok, the Valdai Discussion Club held a special session, titled “Global Challenges and Opportunities for the Far East and the Arctic”.

Despite the complexity and multifaceted nature of this task, the "pivot to the East" policy is bearing fruit: it is not the first year that the pace of development of the region has outperformed the average for Russia. However, over the years, the world we live in has changed: there has been a rollback of globalisation, new geopolitical configurations are emerging, the world economy is beginning to transform under the influence of the “green” agenda, and the coronavirus pandemic has presented humanity with new social challenges.

The Valdai Club session at the EEF-2021 was devoted to the opportunities and threats that the new global context creates for the Russian Far East and the Arctic. Follow this link to read a summery of the session

https://valdaiclub.com/events/posts/articles/the-far-east-and-the-arctic-in-a-new-global-context/ Open / Comment

2021-09-01 20:00:04 Tomorrow, on September 2, the Valdai Club will take part in the Eastern Economic Forum for the fifth time.

A session of the Club, titled “Global Challenges and Opportunities for the Far East and the Arctic” will start at 10:00 AM Vladivostok time (GMT+10)/ 3:00 AM Moscow time (GMT+3). The live broadcast of the session will be available on our website.

The main goal of the session is to find an answer to the question: what new external factors need to be taken into account at the present stage of development of the Far East and the Arctic region?

The guests of the Valdai session are high-ranking politicians, representatives of big business, and intellectuals specialising in political and economic processes in the Asia-Pacific region.

https://valdaiclub.com/multimedia/video/valdai-club-session-at-the-eef-2021/

#EEF #EEF2021 @valdai_club

Sputnik/Vitaliy Ankov Open / Comment

2021-09-01 13:40:20 In recent years, the turn to the East, or pivot to Asia, has been one of the most popular topics in the Russian political and media discourse.

Assessments of this process vary: some consider it a long-overdue necessity and a chance for Russia to increase its competitiveness in the 21st century. Others think this project is a product of Moscow policymakers and does not take into account the real needs of Russians residing in the Asian parts of the country.

Asia’s changing role and its importance in terms of Russia's development are recognised and reflected at the highest level. In 2012, in his election article, “’Russia and the Changing World’ Vladimir Putin wrote about catching the “Chinese wind” in the “sails” of the Russian economy. The eternal question of Russian identity, “who are we?” was overshadowed by a new imperative: “to be closer to Asia to be competitive in the 21st century”. As we will see below, this has not put an end to the discussion of identity.

Russia’s turn to the East is built up from two components: the establishment of increasingly deeper and more active relations with the countries of East Asia and the development of the eastern regions of the country during this process, writes Anton Bespalov, valdaiclub.com Deputy Editor-in-Chief.

We will discuss this and other issues within the framework of the Eastern Economic Forum. The Valdai Club session, titled “Global Challenges and Opportunities for the Far East and the Arctic”, will take place on September 2, at 10:00 AM Vladivostok time (GMT+10).

https://valdaiclub.com/a/highlights/russia-s-turn-to-the-east-expectations-and-the-rea/

@valdai_club #EEF2021 #EEF Open / Comment

2021-09-01 11:31:48 If there is one lesson to take from the Cold War it is that even when bilateral relations are most strained everyone benefits from continued communication.

The dialogue, which was announced following a summit meeting between US President Joe Biden and Russian President Vladimir Putin on 16th June, has been seen as an important first step in addressing a growing range of national and global security concerns held by both parties, and to hopefully lay the groundwork for future arms control and risk reduction measures.

What is hoped is that these high-level meetings will help to address the most pressing national security concerns, explore possibilities for arms control and thus hopefully prevent a future arms race and conflict, writes Andrew Futter, Professor of International Politics, University of Leicester, UK. Professor Futter’s work is currently funded by the European Research Council.

https://valdaiclub.com/a/highlights/us-russia-strategic-stability-dialogue-why/

#Conflict_and_Leadership #US #Russia @valdai_club Open / Comment

2021-08-31 20:41:55 A situation is emerging where vaccination has been transformed from a private choice into a mobilisation tool of the state to combat the pandemic.

Over the past month, more and more countries have begun to announce mandatory vaccination against coronavirus for certain segments of the population, usually associated with certain professions. As a rule, those obliged to get vaccinated work in management, the service sector (food, trade, transport), etc. Also, in many cases, compulsory vaccination has affected higher education — both teachers and students. To what extent this measure violates human rights (the right to work, the right to education, the right to an informed choice in the field of health care) is debatable and complex, although in fact, it’s a simple question. Obviously there is a violation. The essence of the matter is only in the balance between the interests of the whole society and/or the state, on the one hand, and human rights, on the other.

There are different lists of approved vaccines in different countries, which do not always coincide with each other. Accordingly, the world has not developed a homogeneous global vaccine space from a legal point of view. This has already found its reflection in vaccine passports, and in introducing them, states recognise some vaccines and do not recognise others.

Another aspect of the same problem has been the dramatic changes to the visa and entry policies of a number of states. This has a serious negative impact on the restoration of global mobility, both in the tourism and business sectors and in the cross-border labor market, as it discourages foreign workers from entering or returning to the country where they used to work.

Accordingly, the vaccine is becoming an instrument of restrictive migration policy, writes Valdai Club Programme Director Oleg Barabanov.

#Morality_and_Law #vaccination

https://valdaiclub.com/a/highlights/mandatory-identification-and-human-rights/ Open / Comment

2021-08-31 16:11:04 For Russia, the “turn to the East” is a serious and long-term affair.

“Russia’s pivot to the East” was originally inspired by both geostrategic and practical considerations. In geostrategic terms, the absolute dependence of Russia on trade and other economic ties to Europe became unacceptable immediately after Russia was able to overcome the consequences of the internal shocks which followed the geopolitically catastrophic collapse of the USSR.

In the East, has a huge population, which is rapidly increase their consumption potential. Developing Siberia, and especially the Far East, is the most reliable way to strengthen the integrity and cohesion of the vast Russian state in its entirety. New opportunities to realise this potential became apparent 10 years ago, when the economic development of Asian countries acquired a new quality, allowing people to talk about the region not only as a "workshop of the world", but also as a "consumer of the world". Utilising this practical opportunity is no less important than the geostrategic basis of the “pivot to the East”.

In the phrase “Russia's pivot to the East” the key word is Russia, where internal development through the use of new opportunities in Asia is a national priority, writes Timofei Bordachev, Programne Director of the Valdai Club and a moderator of Valdai Club's session at the Eastern Economic Forum.

The session, titled “Global Challenges and Opportunities for the Far East and the Arctic”, will take place on September 2, at 10:00 AM Vladivostok time (GMT+10).

https://valdaiclub.com/a/highlights/turn-to-the-east-and-the-new-world-geopolitics/ Open / Comment

2021-08-30 14:05:21 Valdai Discussion Club pinned « EEF-2021: The Valdai Discussion Club will take part in the Eastern Economic Forum for the fifth time. On September 2, at 10:00 AM Vladivostok time (GMT+10), a session of the Club, titled “Global Challenges and Opportunities for the Far East and the Arctic”…» Open / Comment

2021-08-30 14:05:16 EEF-2021: The Valdai Discussion Club will take part in the Eastern Economic Forum for the fifth time. On September 2, at 10:00 AM Vladivostok time (GMT+10), a session of the Club, titled “Global Challenges and Opportunities for the Far East and the Arctic”, will take place.

During all previous years, the focus of the Valdai Club’s attention at the EEF was related to Russia’s pivot to the East. Today, this pivot can be considered a fait accompli and we can confidently state that Russia is present in the Asian region. That is why the Club’s session at the EEF is centred not on Russia’s presence in Asia as such, but on the quality of this presence.

The pandemic year has significantly adjusted the external conditions for the development of the Far East and the Arctic region and their integration into the world economy. There were both positive factors — an increase in continental trade and interconnectedness in Eurasia, and negative ones — new non-tariff restrictions, barriers to international mobility. All these factors must be taken into account in the discussion of practical issues affecting regional development. The Club intends to make an analytical “update” of the state of the economy and politics in the Far East and Asia through the prism of Russian interests and capabilities.

The main goal of the session is to find an answer to the question: what new external factors need to be taken into account at the present stage of development of the Far East and the Arctic region?

The guests of the Valdai session are high-ranking politicians, representatives of big business, and intellectuals specialising in political and economic processes in the Asia-Pacific region.

Andrei Bystritsky, Chairman of the Board of the Foundation for Development and Support of the Valdai Discussion Club, will make an opening speech at the beginning of the session.

Speakers:

Alexei Chekunkov, Minister for the Development of the Russian Far East and Arctic (online)

Glenn Diesen, professor at the University of Southeast Norway

Atsushi Sunami, President of the Sasakawa Peace Foundation

Kevin Rudd, Prime Minister of Australia (2007-2010, 2013), President of the Asia Society Policy Institute

Vyacheslav Ruksha, Deputy Director of ROSATOM; Director for the Northern Sea Route (NSR) Directorate of ROSATOM

Yuri Trutnev, Deputy Prime Minister of the Russian Federation, Presidential Plenipotentiary Envoy to the Far Eastern Federal District (online)

Moderator:

Timofei Bordachev, Programne Director of the Valdai Discussion Club; Academic Supervisor of the Centre for Comprehensive European and International Studies, National Research University Higher School of Economics

Working languages: Russian, English.

Venue: Vladivostok, Far Eastern Federal University, Building B, Conference Hall No. 6.

Entrance to the event is free to EEF participants and journalists accredited at the Forum.

https://valdaiclub.com/events/announcements/the-valdai-club-s-session-at-the-eastern-economic-forum-2021/ Open / Comment