Head of the Russian Foreign Ministry Press Center, Deputy Director of the Department of Information and Press Ivan Nechayev spoke at the International Conference "Russia - Islamic World: Practical Steps in Media Cooperation", which is taking place in Moscow on Thursday. The speaker talked about the specifics of the ministry's work with foreign journalists from Muslim countries.
The diplomat reminded that Russia is a multinational and multi-confessional country, which has a rich historical experience of coexisting different cultures. The development of cooperation with the Islamic world is one of the most important priorities of the Russian foreign policy doctrine.
"Our country maintains historical ties with Muslim states. The dialogue of civilizations is of particular importance for the strengthening of political stability in the international arena. Currently, there is an active and progressive process of rapprochement of Russia with the countries of the Islamic world. It is also due to cooperation in information sphere, where our countries actively cooperate, being guided by principles of respect for all cultures, religions, and worldviews", he noted.
According to the Russian legislation, the main coordinating role with representatives of foreign mass media is assigned to the Information and Press Department of the Russian MFA. In Russia, a representative of a foreign media outlet may work as a journalist only after receiving an appropriate visa and accreditation with the MFA. The total number of accredited journalists under the Russian MFA is currently about 650 including those who permanently live in Russia and report on developments in its territory.
These journalists represent 62 countries. Among them are representatives of the Islamic world, including Afghanistan, Iran, Kuwait, Azerbaijan, Egypt, Iraq, Qatar, Kyrgyzstan, Morocco, Lebanon, UAE, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Syria, etc. A total of 70 media representatives from Islamic countries are accredited in Russia. It is also significant that Chairman of the Foreign Correspondent Association in Russia Adib Al-Sayed also represents the Islamic world, being the head of the Kuwaiti press bureau.
There is a growing interest of the Middle Eastern media in Russia. There are many requests for interviews with the leadership of the Russian MFA. The latest interview of Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, for example, was with representatives of Kazakhstan, Nechayev added.
According to him, a balanced approach to the coverage of the current foreign policy agenda, the desire to give all points of view on a particular issue and objective coverage of the situation in the country are specific features of the Islamic world media working in Russia.
GSV "Russia - Islamic World"