More than 100 young diplomats from 23 countries gathered in Ufa, Russia, last week to discuss the future of the BRICS group at the VI BRICS+ Young Diplomats Forum. The event was organised under Russia’s chairmanship of the bloc this year and saw participation from representatives of BRICS nations and others.
The forum was a platform for discussing economic cooperation, financial and settlement systems, youth policy, sports development, and security policy. Participants also explored the role of BRICS in the modern international order.
TV BRICS acted as an international media partner of the event.
“The key to the success of the forum of young diplomats lies in the rich professional agenda that we observe at the events taking place these days in Ufa,” said Vladimir Kuznetsov, Director of the UN Information Centre in Moscow, highlighting the forum’s importance in fostering trust and understanding between countries.
The event also served as a prelude to the upcoming BRICS summit, scheduled to take place in Kazan, Russia, in October.
Liu Mengjing, Third Secretary of the Chinese Embassy in Russia, emphasised China’s commitment to supporting Russia’s chairmanship of BRICS and achieving significant results at the Kazan summit. “China will continue to provide all-round support to Russia as the BRICS chair and will promote the achievement of significant results at the summit in Kazan,” Mengjing said.
The forum’s theme, “The Role of Youth Diplomacy in Strengthening Multilateralism for Equitable Global Development and Security,” resonated with participants, including Ana Lourdes Gonzalez Vilches, First Secretary in the Department of Europe and Canada of Cuba’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs. “The forum was a platform where we were able to discuss opportunities for BRICS member countries to expand their cooperation scheme to other countries in the world,” Vilches said.
Mariam Dembele, Head of the Secretariat of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Integration in Africa of Senegal highlighted the desire of African countries to actively develop cooperation with BRICS members. “BRICS contributes to the evolving global order. The group’s call for a more inclusive and representative global system resonates with many countries in the Global South, including African nations,” Dembele stated.
At the event’s conclusion, participants from 14 countries joined the International Association of Young Diplomats, a group created by the Russian Foreign Ministry to build trust between nations. The association now boasts over 150 members from 34 countries.
The Young Diplomats Forum has been held annually since 2015. This year, the event was held in Ufa, the capital of the Bashkortostan Republic, to coincide with the city’s 450th anniversary.
