Third ‘Russia and Ibero-America in a Globalizing World: History and Modernity’ international forum concludes in St. Petersburg
The third ‘Russia and Ibero-America in a Globalizing World: History and Modernity’ international forum has drawn to a close. The event was attended by some 500 representatives of scientific, expert, and political circles from more than 30 countries.
Discussions took place in various formats: plenary sessions, parallel main conferences, roundtables, presentations, theme-specific meetings, and working groups. In addition, the members of the organizing committee summarized the results of a competition for young Ibero-America researchers.
Speakers and moderators included eminent figures from Latin America: Dilma Rousseff, a Brazilian politician and former President of the Federative Republic of Brazil (2011–2016); Ernesto Samper Pizano, former President of Colombia (1994–1998) and Secretary-General of the The Union of South American Nations (2014-2017); Jorge Castañeda Gutman, a Mexican diplomat and politician; Alejandro Encinas, former Head of Government of Mexico City; Aldo Panfichi Huamán, President of the Latin American Studies Association (LASA); Pablo Gentili, Executive Director of the Latin American Council of Social Sciences; Jussi Pakkasvirta, President of the European Council for Social Research on Latin America; José Antonio Ocampo, former UN Under-Secretary-General for Economic and Social Affairs and Co-director of the Central Bank of Colombia; and many others.
Lazar Jeifets, Chairman of the Scientific Council at the Ibero-American Studies Centre of St. Petersburg State University, who chaired the event’s organizing committee, commented on the outcome of the event: “Through the joint efforts of St. Petersburg State University, the Bering–Bellingshausen Institute for the Americas, the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Santander Bank, we have been able to put together an outstanding event – an event which is indicative of the interest our country has in Ibero-American issues, and of the interest shown in the countries of Latin America towards Russian scientific expertise. We have been extremely pleased to observe the continued growth in the representation of political figures and experts from the Ibero-American nations.”
An important practical aspect of the event was the discussion of the prospects and opportunities for economic, political, and scientific cooperation between Russia and Latin America in the context of current world economic trends.
“The ‘Russia and Ibero-America in a Globalizing World: History and Modernity’ forum is a productive platform for developing bilateral relations between Russia and Latin America”, said Advisor to the President of the Russian Federation Anton Kobyakov. “The interest garnered by the event is demonstrative of the desire of our colleagues overseas to discuss current issues and work together to find constructive solutions. The Roscongress Foundation, as co-organizer of the event, has become an important force for development, which is key to the strengthening of international ties in the scientific, academic and business spheres”, Kobyakov concluded.
A wide range of topics were explored, including the issues surrounding the framework for international relations, the crisis facing the socialist regimes of Latin America and what this means for Russia, legal systems and integration processes, establishing cultural ties between countries, and the role of BRICS in creating a multipolar world.
Sergey Brilyov, PhD, an expert at Roscongress, member of the Council on Foreign and Defence Policy Presidium, and President of the Bering–Bellingshausen Institute for the Americas, noted in his address: “We have here an extraordinary coinciding of figures: the third ‘Russia and Ibero-America’ forum run by St. Petersburg State University, and the three Latin American sessions that have already taken place at SPIEF. Behind us is the first offsite session held by Roscongress and the IBBA in Montevideo. Still to come – the same new offsite format in Grenada. All in all, this is a unique way to create a common agenda spanning the worlds of business, politics, media, and academia.”
As a follow up to the event a collection of presentations and articles is to be published, alongside the winning essays of the student competition.
The dialogue between the scientific and business communities will continue at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum 2018 offsite session, to be held on November 1–3, 2017 in St. George’s, Grenada.
