Assembly of Peoples of Russia marks 20th anniversary

On July 8, 1998, in accordance with the State National Policy Concept of the Russian Federation, approved by presidential decree, the All-Russian public organization "Assembly of Peoples of Russia" was established.

"The Assembly of Peoples of Russia was created to continue the historic mission of gathering the peoples and territories of Russia. For the years of its existence it has proved its importance and relevance and become an integral part of our multinational society. The Assembly's activities as a key player of civil society in the sphere of national policy are an historical necessity. Russia emerged and developed as a multinational state, where respecting other nations, communicating as equals, friendliness and a desire to live in harmony with neighbors is the norm of life," chairperson of the Council of the Assembly of Peoples of Russia Svetlana Smirnova said.

"We came up with the initiative to popularize the work of the Assembly in a special way through the issue of the state postage stamp of Russia. The initiative was supported by the commission of the Federal Communications Agency of the Russian Federation on state postage stamps. It was decided to issue artistically stamped envelopes in 2018, dedicated to the 20th anniversary of the Assembly of Peoples of Russia, for which we are very grateful to Rossvyaz," Smirnova said.

"Not every organization, not every public initiative, can stand such test of time, 20 years is a significant period for a public association. Over this time, hundreds of interesting projects were implemented that made a great contribution to the rallying of people in our country and to interethnic peace and harmony between them. The Assembly actively transmits its experience to the regions. The Assembly has 25 resource centers. One can receive advice on any matter within the scope of the organization's activities in each republic, in each region, province, in each of our subjects," head of the Department of National Policy at the Russian Presidential Administration's Domestic Policy Directorate Tatiana Vagina said.

According to her, "the national policy is not so just interethnic relations, it is everyday life of people. This is the social and cultural adaptation of migrants, it is helping people in difficult situations, settling conflicts that most often result from simple everyday situations. It is very important to contribute to the settlement of these issues by using the experience and authority of the organization. The Assembly is our most reliable partner as a civil society institution in the implementation of state national policy."

Chairman of the State Duma Committee for Nationalities Ildar Gilmutdinov said: "At the initiative of the Assembly, we went beyond the borders of the country, we already unitу the Eurasian space. They just declared that there will be a Eurasian forum, and instead of 1500 delegates, it was attended by about 3000 delegates from more than 60 countries at their own expense. It indicates that people want to communicate, be friends, that people want to live in peace and harmony."