On December 11, 2024, in the capital of Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur was held a meeting of the Group of Strategic Vision “Russia - Islamic World” (GSV), on the topic of “Interaction between Russia and the Islamic World in the Era of Emerging Multipolarity”.
The meeting was attended by about 200 people. Except of the Group members, also were represented leaders of Muslim communities of the BRICS countries, the Asia-Pacific region (APR) and various industry experts. The meeting agenda included summing up the results of the BRICS summit (held in Kazan in October), developing cooperation in the economy, Islamic banking and security, as well as prospects for joint work in the political, trade and economic, cultural and humanitarian and spiritual and moral spheres.
Before the meeting, after the presentation of an informational video about the activities of the Group, the Mufti of Tatarstan Kamil Hazrat Samigullin read selected ayats of the Holy Quran.
The Head of the Republic of Tatarstan, Chairman of the GSV Rustam Minnikhanov read out a greeting from the President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin. In his message, the Russian leader noted that Russia traditionally attaches great importance to the development of friendly relations with Muslim countries - both bilaterally and within the framework of the dialogue with the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC). Both sides advocate the construction of a fair democratic world order based on genuine equality and the rule of international law, free from any forms of discrimination, dictate and sanctions pressure.
Rustam Minnikhanov recalled that in 2003 in Kuala Lumpur the President Vladimir Putin announced Russia's intention to join the OIC as an observer, since more than 20 million Muslims live in the country. Islam is an important part of the multinational and multi-confessional Russian society.
Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar bin Ibrahim stated the state's desire to maintain its independence while maintaining relations with both the West and the East. According to the Prime Minister, partnership with Russia is not only politics, but also trade and economic cooperation, including in the area of Islamic finance and innovative technologies, as well as cultural ties, such as in the area of combating Islamophobia.
Anwar bin Ibrahim called the situation in Palestine "the tragedy of the century, cynical barbarity and a repetition of the history of colonization". The Prime Minister said he refused to listen to lectures on human rights from Western leaders, as it was obvious that they themselves disregarded them. In addition, Anwar bin Ibrahim expressed deep concern over the ongoing events in Syria, emphasizing the importance of a peaceful transition of power that respects the interests of the country's various communities.
"Hot spots" all over the world are the result of the unlawful interference of Western powers in the policies of sovereign states", - Rustam Minnikhanov noted in his speech. The Chairman of the GSV expressed hope that through the joint efforts of the healthy forces of all nations it will be possible to form the correct vector of human development aimed at mutually beneficial cooperation based on equality, justice and national traditions and values.
An important contribution to this process was the unification of BRICS, including the 16th summit of this organization, which was held in October of this year in Kazan, Tatarstan. Three Islamic countries (Egypt, Iran, the United Arab Emirates) are members of BRICS, and in total, leaders and representatives of 16 Muslim states participated in the summit events; five Islamic countries, including Malaysia, became partners of BRICS. Rustam Minnikhanov also assured that the GSV will actively promote the development of Russian-Malaysian relations.
The welcoming speech from the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation Sergey Lavrov was conveyed by his deputy Andrey Rudenko. A representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry noted that Russia and Islamic countries are united by a firm commitment to the natural right to determine their own paths of development. However, the state of affairs in the world is indeed unstable.
Alarming trends are observed in the Asia-Pacific region, where the West is trying to transfer the logic of bloc confrontation. The situation in the Middle East, in the Gaza Strip, remains extremely difficult, which is complicated by the latest events in Syria. Russia is convinced that normalization in the entire Middle East can only be ensured by the implementation of the UN-approved regulation formula, which provides for the formation of an independent Palestinian state.
This implies the return of Palestine to the 1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as the capital, as OIC Representative Mohamed Salah Tekaya noted in his speech. The OIC calls on the international community, especially the UN, to make every possible effort to prevent the Israeli occupation, the spread of war and the destabilization of the Middle East region.
Regarding bilateral relations with the Russian Federation, Mr. Tekaya stated the following: “The partnership between Russia and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation is evidence of continuous development, marked by regular high-level meetings with the aim of improving mutually beneficial cooperation and discussing common views on international issues”.
"Russia occupies a unique position as a bridge between civilizations", - said Dr. Osman Bakar, Rector of the International Islamic University of Malaysia. The integration of the Islamic financial system into the Russian economy presupposes increased investment in socially significant projects; cooperation between Russian specialists and the International Islamic University of Malaysia plays an important role in this. The positive dynamics of the process in this area was emphasized by the speech of Oleg Ganeev, Senior Vice President of Sberbank.
Scientific Director of the Institute for Oriental Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences Vitaly Naumkin said that in the context of a changing world, Russia, as a multi-confessional state, is of interest as a model for many other powers, especially countries in the global South.
"We cannot ignore the process that has begun between Russia and the United Arab Emirates, where an experiment has begun on the model of the Primakov Gymnasium to teach Arabic as the main language in this gymnasium, with subsequent access to higher education. Increasing interest in Arabic as one of the languages of the global south, along with Russian, is an integral part of the process that we are discussing here", - Naumkin said.
Chairman of the Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs of the Kingdom of Bahrain Abdulrahman Bin Mohammed Al-Khalifa noted that today the world is facing serious changes that are difficult to predict.
"During the general debate at the 79th session of the UN General Assembly, we declared the urgent need for a comprehensive reform of the international system", - Mr. Al-Khalifa recalled. He emphasized that within the framework of mutual respect for common human values, the Kingdom of Bahrain highly appreciates the strengthening of relations between the Russian Federation and the Islamic world.
Speeches of the Chairman of the World Muslim Community Council Ali Rashid Al-Nuaimi and the Chief Justice of Palestine Mahmoud Sudqi Al-Habbash were extremely emotional.
"The people of Gaza are suffering greatly, they need basic necessities: food, medicine, and so on, but we must recognize that they lack education", - said Mr. Al-Nuaimi. According to him, it is not a question of taking Palestinian youth out of the Gaza Strip, but of providing them with distance learning programs, whether general education or university.
In his speech, Mr. Al-Habbash cited horrifying statistics: in more than a year of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict in the Gaza Strip, 44,000 people have been killed, including 17,000 children and 12,000 women. Despite war crimes, the United States continues to cooperate with Israel, disregarding international law.
"All this threatens a catastrophe for the world", - the Chief Justice of Palestine emphasized. He stated that the Palestinian people are counting on the GSV and all international organizations and blocs that are ready to support the Palestinians and participate in building a new world order to end injustice.
Kuwait is one of the Arab countries that, from the very beginning of its existence, has been calling for dialogue and the desire to rid the world of conflicts and wars in order to open new horizons for cooperation with various countries of the world. This was stated in his speech by the adviser to the Emir of Kuwait, Chairman of the International Islamic Charity Organization Abdullah Matouq Al-Maatouk. In this context, Kuwait is looking forward to developing relations with the Russian Federation. Mr. Al-Maatouk also recalled that Kuwait was the first country in the Persian Gulf to establish diplomatic relations with the Soviet Union.
Deputy Chairman of the Religious Board of Muslims of Russia Mufti Rushan Abbyasov in his speech noted that despite pressure from the West, the Russian Federation and Muslim countries continue to build common ties. The Mufti recalled the meeting of the Religious Leaders of Muslims of the BRICS countries that took place in Kazan, following which a common resolution was signed. In addition, Rushan Abbyasov noted that the experience of Malaysia inspired Russian Muslims to organize many events: for example, the International Quran Recitation Competition, held in Moscow, or an exhibition of Russian halal products.
"Whoever wants to have friends must be friendly himself, and there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother", - Metropolitan Kirill of Kazan and Tatarstan quoted a biblical saying. Such friendship connects Orthodoxy and Islam in Tatarstan and Russia. The republic is often cited as an example of love between faiths. In his speech, the religious figure also expressed gratitude on behalf of Patriarch Kirill to all participants of the GSV “Russia – Islamic World”.
Metropolitan Kirill stated that today there is also a problem of Christianophobia, in addition, holy sites are being destroyed and murders are taking place on religious grounds in both Syria and Palestine. “Despite the differences in our faiths, we are united by the understanding that the devil, cast down from heaven by the Creator, is the original enemy of the human race”, - he recalled.
Director of the Tatar Trading House in Turkey Ramil Mavlyutov spoke about the International Business Forum "World of Opportunities: Russia - ASEAN" held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The forum became an important discussion platform for discussing and widely covering issues of further strengthening trade and investment ties between Russia and ASEAN in various areas. Mr. Mavlyutov expressed hope that the forum will be held annually.
Seven points necessary for further interaction between Russia and the Islamic world in the context of emerging multipolarity were presented by the Secretary General of the World Forum for Proximity of Islamic schools of thoughts, Hamid Khavali Shahriari.
In addition to resisting the unilateral order insisted on by the US, the points include: finding a new mechanism to solve global problems based on the principle of justice; eliminating the incompetence of individual leaders of Islamic countries; balancing national and global interests; introducing an international currency to counter the dollar; relying on a new world order such as BRICS and developing the media to improve literacy.
“The world is more than five countries”, - Vice-President of the Justice and Development Party of Turkey Nihat Zeybekci quoted President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in his speech. He once again recalled one of the most serious problems in the Islamic world – the situation in the Gaza Strip.
"In civilized countries, we see expressions of hatred towards Muslims, all under the slogan of "freedom of speech". <...> The world is very sensitive when we talk about anti-Semitism, and that is as it should be. However, we expect the same level of sensitivity and intolerance towards Islamophobia", - said Mr. Zeybekci. He also expressed the opinion that Russia and the Islamic world should develop cooperation based on mutual respect, since mutually beneficial cooperation makes both sides stronger.
"Talk of American exceptionalism has become a subject of ridicule and contempt", - said Ezzat Saad, Head of the Egyptian Council for Foreign Affairs. The support of Israel by leading Western powers represents a continuation of the disgusting colonial legacy and Western imperialism.
In conclusion of his speech, Mr. Saad noted the positive changes that have occurred in relations between Russia and the Islamic world: this includes the Russian-Arab Cooperation Forum within the framework of the League of Arab States, and the participation of Arab countries in numerous Russian initiatives in the context of dialogue of cultures and civilizations. Russia made a major contribution to the development of partnership during its chairmanship of BRICS this year.
Kamil Samigullin's participation did not limit himself to reciting selected ayats of the Holy Quran. The Mufti of Tatarstan invited the participants of the meeting to cooperate with Tatarstan and the Religious Board of Muslims of the Republic of Tatarstan in the field of developing Islam. He noted that the republic knows how to work with foreign Muslim partners and investments and is ready to offer many interesting projects for the benefit of strengthening religion.
In his speech, Kamil Hazrat called Tatarstan a real Islamic center of Russia, where Muslim infrastructure is steadily developing. The Mufti of Tatarstan also spoke in detail about the extensive publishing activities of the RBM RT and about the electronic library "Darul-kutub", which contains more than 2,000 volumes of ancient digitized works of Tatar theologians.
The last two years can be called historic in terms of developing cooperation between the Islamic Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (ISESCO) and the Republic of Tatarstan, Russian Federation. GSV has become an active platform for interaction with the Islamic world and cooperation within the organization is a very important opportunity to use strengths and resources to counter global challenges. Such a partnership is not just a geopolitical issue, but evidence of common aspirations and connections between our peoples, noted the head of the ISESCO Center for Partnerships and International Cooperation Anar Karimov.
Director General of the Union of News Agencies at the OIC Muhammad Bin Abd Rabbo Al-Yami told about strengthening the diversity of the Organization's media discourse through three key aspects. The first concerns the coverage of political issues; the second aspect is the promotion of news exchanges among media within the OIC in order to counter the monopoly of third-party media flows.
The third aspect is the exchange of experiences and practices within the Islamic world and the global South. The Union actively participates in international conferences held in member countries and has concluded numerous agreements with leading media outlets in the Islamic world, Africa, China and Russia. The events held within the framework of the KazanForum in 2024 created unprecedented conditions for communication and mutual understanding between journalists from the Islamic world and the Russian Federation.
Former Rector of the International Islamic University Malaysia Abdul Razak Dzulkifli also shared an interesting initiative with the participants of the meeting. "We are talking about a conference during which we must understand what genocide is", - the speaker said. The emphasis is on looking at it from a historical point of view, when a large number of people died due to colonialism or oppression related to some political events.
“The shift in global political thinking towards a multipolar world order is already happening and soon the current structure will become a thing of the past”, - said Pakistan National Assembly member Sehar Kamran. However, the speaker noted that innovative approaches to cooperation are needed – a multilateral framework that would take into account the diverse interests of a multipolar world. Joint coordination and a balanced approach to decision-making are needed to form a more just and fair world order.
The speech of the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Russia Ramazan Abdulatipov turned out to be quite voluminous. The key thesis of the speaker's report was the opinion on the ineffectiveness of the measures taken to resolve the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. In particular, he recalled the framework agreement between the Russian Federation and the OIC, within the framework of which consultations on cooperation between the parties were held twice a year. However, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the consultations were interrupted.
Meanwhile, Deputy Chairman of the GSV Farit Mukhametshin, acting as the moderator of the meeting, clarified that consultations in this area resumed in December of this year.
"President Vladimir Putin's policy is to shape the features of a new Russia", - said Badra Gaaloul, director of the International Center for Strategic, Military and Security Studies (Tunisia). At the same time, the Russian Federation is taking a course to the East, not to the West. In the near future, Russia will benefit greatly from such a turn in the framework of economic cooperation, she also noted.
Director of the Scientific and Practical Center for Child Psychoneurology of the Moscow Healthcare Department, Deputy of the Moscow City Duma, Doctor of Medical Sciences Tatiana Batysheva in her speech drew attention to the demographic situation in the world, which causes certain concerns. The number of children is decreasing, their morbidity and disability are growing. One of the leading areas of assistance to children is rehabilitation. "There are no other people's children in the world" - this is the main motto of Russian doctors and scientists who founded the International Association of Children's Rehabilitation Specialists, which Ms. Batysheva spoke about.
"The Middle East is a time bomb that is about to explode, and we need to ensure that this situation changes", - said Jamal Khamees (Al-Dhari), head of the Iraqi National Project party. A separate problem is terrorism, which must be addressed together. Therefore, Russia has a special interest in expanding partnership with the Islamic world and considers this the main element of its foreign policy, noted Mr. Khamees.
"Russia should play an important role in resolving international conflicts and long-standing political problems, especially given that there is a huge mass of Muslims in Russia", - said Sheikh Mabrouk Zaid Al-Khair, chairman of the Supreme Islamic Council of Algeria. In his opinion, this circumstance is an example of the fact that dialogue between cultures is possible.
As noted by Professor at the National Islamic University in Jakarta, Chairman of the Global Center for Moderate Islam Din Shamsuddin, his speech is in many ways a continuation of the report at the previous meeting of the GSV, held in Kazan in May. According to the professor, the Russian Federation can cooperate with the Islamic world in three areas: global and regional security; economic and financial partnership for the purpose of fair global development; exchange of experience between people for social development.
Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary, Director General of the Institute of Strategic Studies (Pakistan) Mahmood Soheil in his speech drew attention to the importance of organizations like BRICS as well as the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) in upholding international law, especially in the context of the developments in the Middle East. Mr. Soheil called for more inclusiveness in the process of bringing in new partners into these alliances, which is necessary for Pakistan.
The speeches concluded with reports from the Chairman of the Council on State-Confessional Relations under the Head of Bashkortostan Azat Fattakhov and the Director of the Center for Islamic Civilization under the Cabinet of Ministers of the Republic of Uzbekistan Firdavs Abdukhalikov.
According to the President of Uzbekistan, (Shavkat Mirziyoyev – editor's note), it is necessary to fight xenophobia and ignorance through the propaganda of the heritage of our great ancestors, who made a huge contribution to the development of world civilization and culture. Important structures created in Uzbekistan in recent years are aimed at implementing these ideas: The Bukhari, Maturidi and Tirmizi research centers. Firdavs Abdukhalikov called on the forum participants to establish joint activities in the area of active propaganda of the ideas of outstanding thinkers.
"The Republic of Bashkortostan, as one of the largest Russian regions, has a unique experience of interethnic and interfaith dialogue and cooperation", - Mr. Fattakhov noted. Bashkortostan is the historical center of Russian Islam. For example, the first Religious Board of Muslims of Russia was formed here in 1788 by decree of Catherine II.