Russia-Europe Dialogue: Peace and Security in Multicultural Societies at a Time of Global Crisis

In his message to the Conference Dr. Walter Schwimmer (Secretary General of the Council of Europe 1999-2004) wrote: “There is no Russia without Europe, no Europe without Russia […] After so many bloody conflicts and atrocities that culminated in the historic tragedy of the World War II, Europe remembered not only its cultural identity but found also its political identity in the spiritual and moral values which are also the common heritage of the peoples of Europe, pluralist democracy, rule of law, individual freedom, political liberty, the respect for human rights. To respect this diversity is the key to stability, security and peace in Europe, not only at international level. […] To achieve unity in diversity, Europe needs Russia, Russia needs Europe. Russia is an indispensable part of Europe.

Peace and Security in Multicultural Societies at a time of Global Crisis

Dr. Willem Van Eekelen, former minister of Defence of the Netherlands, spoke about conditions for security in democratic societies: good governance, accountability and transparency, respect for human rights, “zero tolerance for discrimination”. He said “Put governments before their responsibility towards their own people, before we talk of military intervention. In the end naming and shaming might be more effective in promoting mutual understanding and common values. And I encourage UPF to lead us in that direction.”

Dr. Stanislav Nikolaenko, former minister of Education and Science of Ukraine, introduced a vision of the “noosphere society”, where mankind’s current state of division and conflicts will be transcended by raising the human mind, through a process of intercultural communication and education. “Through the purification of humanity and a path of complete education, the noosphere society will allow us to enter into contact with other cosmic worlds”, he said.

Dr. Thomas Walsh, President of UPF, analyzed the concepts of peace, security and multiculturalism and noted their expanded meaning today: greater focus on human security; more inclusive meaning of peace- building, etc. He pointed to the challenge which multiculturalism can present to peace and the need for shared national values. “A family system, he concluded, that engenders respect for the role of the state and rule of law, on the one hand, and respect for the legitimate rights of other sub-cultures that inhabit the same state, is an essential component of peace and security in multi-cultural societies.”

Mr Sergei Kuchinsky, Chairman of the Assembly of the Peoples of Russia, spoke about Russia’s 182

ethnic communities and 240 languages and dialects. Founded in 1998 to implement Russia’s state policy for nationalities, the organization has carried out projects for development and dialogue among nationalities: the Congress of Russian Peoples, the House of Nationalities, etc. He explained about their priorities of working with federal and local authorities, improving the status of nationalities, and creating an ”All Russian identity” to preserve spiritual and cultural unity in the post-Soviet world.

Peace and Security in Multicultural Societies: Russian and European Approaches

Dr. Michael Platzer, Director of the Academic Council on the United Nations System (ACUNS) in Vienna, introduced the integration policy of the Austrian government. He described a 20 point program for integration, from strengthening the participation in the education system, learning the German language, promoting employment for migrant women, to intercultural dialogue, sports activities, teaching integration skills, etc. He also described various NGO initiatives dealing with the cultural diversity in Austria.

Dr. Marcel de Haas, a war analyst and senior research associate at the Clingendael Institute of International Relations in the Netherlands, reviewed in fluent Russian the opportunities of military cooperation between the EU and Russia, and between NATO and Russia. He recommended that both sides should “consider the sensitivities of the other side and take each other seriously” and “cooperate from bottom to top”, encouraging exchange of students and military to promote trust.

Ambassador Nicolae Tau, former minister of Foreign Affairs of Moldova, discussed the pluralistic nature of societies in Europe and the former communist world. He analyzed multiculturalism from the perspective of culture, religion, and democracy; emphasized the need for objective scholarly approach to majority and minority views. “In western democracies, he said, it is easier to define the “other” on a religious or cultural rather than ideological basis; in post-communist societies the dominant other is still related to the previous experience of communist rule”.

Ambassador Robert Vandemeulebroucke, Honorary Ambassador at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Belgium, concluded the day with a reflection on the current challenges of inter-ethnic relations in Western Europe. He noted that last year’s terrorist act in Norway took place in one of the most progressive and integrated multicultural societies in Europe. He warned that terrorism was often caused by individuals under the influence of hate ideologies, and that governments should not discriminate against minorities under public pressure.

Mrs. Olga Meshkova, Secretary of the NGOs Council of Kondopoga municipal region (Russia), shared her experience in inter-ethnic integration as a local government official. Her city experienced, in 2006, a week of ethnic riots that shook the nation, shedding light on the deficient status of migrants from the Caucasus in Russia. Working under the chairperson of the Legislative Assembly of the Karelian Republic, Mrs. Meshkova has played a key role in building conditions for inter-ethnic harmony in her city in recent years.

UPF Eurasia Leadership Conference Russia-Europe Dialogue Peace and Security in Multicultural Societies at a Time of Global Crisis Moscow, April 6-7. 20 12

On April 6-7. 2012 3 UPF conference lOok place in Moscow to comme morate the UPF Founde rs Dr. and Mrs. Moon’s vis it to Russ ia in 1990. when they me t wi th Pres ident Gorbachev .

A joint prognlll of UPF-Eurasia and UPF-Europe. the conference was e ntitled: “Russia- Europe Dialogue - Peace and Sec urit y in Multicu ltu ra l Societ ies at a time of Global Crisis”. The th eme of multicu ltu ra lism caused an int ense debate throughout Europe and Russia: this was an o pportunit y for UPF to initiate a dialogue between Russia and European nations. The con ference was attended by public figures. acade mic s. and UPF Peace Am bassadors and vo luntee rs from 23 nations.

Senator As lambek Aslakhanov. De puty C h aiml an of the Committee on Fore ign Affairs at the Russ ian Counc il of Federation (Senate). sent greetings to the participants. wishi ng them frui tful discussions that could streng th en th e frie ndship be tween Russia and European nation s.

Int rod uct ory Sessio n Th e conference began w ith a v ideo introduc ing th e activities of UPF-Euras ia in 201 1. Then a song offering was performed by a young stude nt contestant fo r the up coming “:Mr. and :Miss University Beauty Pa ge anf’, h eld yearly in Moscow with the SUppOlt o f UPF. Mode rat ed by lacques Marion. UPF-Eurasia Secretary General. the introductory session began wi th greeti ngs from re presentatives of UPF Eurasia and Europe c hapte rs.

Dr. Oleg Mirol101’ Dr. Y. C. Song Dr. Van Eeke!en ReI’. Eiji TokllllO Dr. Oleg Mironov. fo rm er Ombud sman of the Russian Federatio n and head of the UPF Peace Council in Ru ssia. we lco med partic ipams and shared about the multicultura l experie nce of Ru ss ia and th e So viet Unio n. He e mphasi zed that inte r-ethnic harmo ny ca nno t be imposed from the top, but must lise f!”Om wi thin people’s mi nds, from adh esion to conUlion valu es. Dr. Y ong C heo n Song. Reg ional Chai r of UPF-Eu rope. w armly greeted participants. conveyed his g ratitude for the invitatio n to Russia and in tum in vited partic ipants to the Europe -Russ ia conference to be held in V ienna. Austria. late r thi s ye ar. He was followed by Dr. Willem Van Eekt’len. former minist er of Defe nse of the Ne therlands. As re presentati ve g uest speake r from Europe. he o ffered greetings and brief remarks o n the c hallenge o f multicult uralism. speak ing from hi s long expe rie nce o f leadership in his country and th e European Unio n. Finally Rev. Eiji T okun o. Regional C hair o f UPF-Eurasi a. concluded with a key no te address. He po inted at three c ruc ial signs o f glo bal c risis: th e breakdow n of famil y affecting the stabilit y of society; the hig h rate o f suic id e revealing a lack o f values and meaning in life; and the inability of the UN 10 prevem conflicts in the world. In co ncl usio n. he said it was UPF’s mission to addre ss these c hallenges and bring fundame nt al so lmions to the g lobal crisi s.

Session I Peace and Security in M ulticulturnl Societies at a time or Global C risis

Th e first panel spea kers represe nted the Netherlands. Russia. Ukraine. and included the Pres iden t of UPF Inte rnational. Dr. Thomas Walsh from the Un it ed Stat es.

Dr. Willem Van El”kl”len. forme r ministe r of Defense o f the Netherlands. spoke abou t condition s for security in democratic societ ies: good governance. accountability and transparency. respec t for human right s, “zero tolerante for di striminati on”. He said “Put govenunent s before th eir respons ib ilit y towards thei r ow n peop le. before we talk of military interve ntion. In th e end nam ing and shaming mig ht be more effective in pro moting mlllual unde rst and ing and common values. And I entourage UPF to lead us in that di redion.”

Dr. Stanislav Nikolaenk o. forme r minister of Education and Sc ience of Ukraine. introduced a visio n of the “noosphere soticty”, where m ankind’s t UlTtilt state of division and conflicts will be transce nd ed by raismg the human mind. through a process of in terc ultural communication and education. “nrrough the plUlfi tation of hlUnanity and a path o f complete education. the noosphere society will allow us to e nter into contact w ith o th er cosmic worlds”. he said.

Dr. Thomas W alsh. Pres id ent of UPE ana lyzed the concepts of peace. security and multic ulturalism and not ed their e:l:panded meaning tooay: greater focus o n human security; more inclusive mean ing of peace- bui ld ing. e tc . He po inted to the c halle nge which multiculturalism can present to peace and th e need for shared national val ues. “A family system. he concluded. that e ngende rs respect for th e role of the state and rule of law. on the one hand. and respect for the legiti mat e rights of o th er sub-cultures that inhabit the same Slate . is an esse ntial compone nt of peace and securit y in nmlti- t ulhrral sotie ti es.” I\lr Sl”rgei Ku chins ky. Chairman of the Assembly of th e Peoples of Russ ia. spoke about Ru ssia’s 182 ellmit conununities and 240 languages and d ialec ts. FOlulded in 1998 to impi emCllt Russi a’s state policy for nationalities. the organization has carri ed out projects fo r deve lopmen t and dialogue among nationalities: the Congress of Russian Peoples. th e Ho use of Nationalities. e tc. He expla in ed about the ir priorities of work ing with federa l and local authorities. improving the status of nati onalities , and treating an “All Russian identity” to preserve spiritual and cultural un ity in the post- Sovie t world.

Session II Pt’ace a nd Security in I\lulti cultural Societies: Ru ssia n and European Approaches

Th e two aft ernoon sessio ns. c haired by Dr. Vladimir Pelro vsk y. Doc to r of political sciences and me mber o f the Academy of military sciences. continued the discuss io n with a focu s o n natio nal approac hes to mu lticulturalism in Europe and Eurasia.

1\1 rs. Zoya K rot. Regional C hair of th e Belarus Peace Fund. descri bed the role o f the Fund. o ne o f th e largest gove rnme nt- related grassroots o rganizations in Belaru s. in promo ting inter-e thnic harmo ny and socia l peace in that country ric h w ith 140 different e thnic groups. The fund works w ith local NG Os. promo tes patrio tism. and kee ps ali ve th e m em ory of WO I’id War II’s enOllllOUS sacrifi ces (a great pCl’ccntage of the population of Belaru s was killed ) throug h vario us comm emo ration s and educational programs.

Dr. Michael Platzer. Direc tor of th e Acade mic Council on the Unit ed N atio ns Syste m (ACUNS) in Vi enna. introduced the integration policy of the Austrian gove rnment. He described a 20 point program for integrat ion . from stre ngthe ning the participation in the education syste m. learning the Ge rman language. promo ting employ me nt fo r migrant wome n. to intercultura l dialogue. spons acti vities. teaching integratio n skills. etc. He also descri bed various NG O ini ti atives dealing w ith the cultu ral di versity in Au stria.

Dr. Saifullo Safa rov. De puty Directo r of the Center fo r Strateg ic Researc h under the Preside nt of Tajik istan. spoke about the need fo r regio nal integratio n in Central As ia. th e be nefit A fghanist an would gain from it. as we ll as the who le reg io n. But o nly through sol ving the problem of inter-ethnic re lations could Afg hanistan start solving o ther problems. A di alogue amo ng ethnic groups sho uld be initi ated by q ualified po lit icians in a neutral country w ith the support of the world conllllUluty. “ I think. he added. that the Uni ve rsal Peace Fede ratio n could play he re an esse ntial role.”

1\1 r. Vladimi r Frolov. a forme r Russian Parliament member and a we ll known acto r, spoke about the project “two languages - one puyer” in Tbilisi, Georg ia. for the sake o f deve lo ping d ialogue between Ru ssia and Georg ia. Eve n tho ug h diplomatic relation s bet ween Russia and G eorg ia are now broke n. he said. he was proud that the Russian government and the Ru ssian pres ident13st ye ar aw ard ed represe ntatives o f G eorgia w ith go ve rnment medal s. The time w ill come. he said. when we w ill find our w ay to love people of other nationalities. The world needs a strong Russia in o rd er to feel sec ure.

Dr. !\\a rcl”l de Haas. a wa r ana lyst and senio r researc h assoc iate at the C linge ndael Institute of Inte rn ational Re13tio ns in the Ne th erland s. rev iewed in nuelll Ru ss ian the opportun ities of military cooperation betwee n the E U and Russia. and be tween NA T O and Russia, He re tolllm ende d th ai bo th sides slum ld “tonside r the sensitivities of the oth er side an d tak e eat h oth el’ seri ously” and “tooperate frolll bott am to to p”, ento uraging exchange o f stude nts and mi lita ry to promo te trust.

Mrs. O lga !\Ieshk ova. Sec retary o f the NGOs Counci l o f Ko ndopoga mu nic ipal reg io n (Russ ia). shared he r expe ri ence 11\ inte r- ethnic illlegratio n as a loca l go ve rnme nt offic ial. Her c it y experienced . in 2006, a week of ethnic riots that shook the nation. shedding lig ht o n the deficie nt status of migrallls from the Caucasus in Ru ss ia. Wo rking mme r the c hairperson o f the Leg islat ive Assembly of the Ka re lian Republic . Mrs. Meshkova has played a key ro le in bu ild ing cond itions for illler- ethnic harmo ny in he r c it y in rece nt ye ars.

Ambassado r Nico lae Tau. former minister of Foreig n Affairs of Moldova. d isc ussed the plural istic natu re of societies in Europe a nd the former communist world. He an alyzed mu ltic ulturalism from th e perspec tive of cu lt ure. rel ig ion, and de mocracy; e mphasized the need for obj et tive sdlolarly approat h to m aj arity and minarity views. “ hi we sten! democ rac ies, he said , it is easier to define the “ oth er” on a religious o r c u!lural rather than ideological bas is; in post-communist societies the do m inan t other is still rel at ed to the prev ious ex perience of communist n d e”. Am bassado r R ab l”rt Va n de nll”ul ebro uckl”. Ho no rary Amba ssado r at the Min istry of Fo reign A ffairs of Belg ium . concl ud ed th e day w ith a re flec tio n OIl the current c hallenges o f inte r-ethnic rel atio ns in Western Eu rope , H e nated that last year’s terro rist act in Norway took place in one of the most progressive 31m integrated multicnltu ra l soc ieties in Europe. He warned th at terrorism w as often caused by indi vid uals mme r the influence o f hate ideo logies. and that governme nts sho uld no t d iscriminate agai nst mi no rities mme r public pressure,

Secti on III E d ucal i a n as a Fad ar of P l” a ce in M nlt ic liltn r a I Socil”ti es

On the second day af the confertllce, the first session dealt with the them e of “E ducati on as a Facia r of Peace in Multi cultural Societi es”. TIle m aderato r, UPF-A ust ria Sec retary Ge nera l Peter Haider. fi rst re ad a leiter from Dr. Walt er Schwi mm er. forme r Sec retary Gene ral of the Co uncil of Europe. addressed to Senator As lakh anov and confere nce part ic ipallls; the lette r ex pressed his regret for no t att end ing. and his support for the cOllfe rence.

P.-fer Haida reading Dr. Schwimmer’s letter Dr. Tagirol’ awarding UPF leadas

Dr. Waitl’”r Schwimmer wrOle: “There is no Ru ss ia w itho m Eu rope. no Europe w itho m Russia [… 1Aft er so many bloody conflicts and atroc ities that culmin ated in the historic traged y of the Wo rld War II. Europe re membered not o nly its cultural ide ntit y but fo und also its political id etllity in the spiritual and moral valu es which are also the commo n he ritage o f the peoples of Europe. pluralist de moc racy. rule of law. ind iv idua l freedo m. political li be rt y. the respect for human rights. To respect thi s d ive rsit y is the ke y 10 stabilit y. sec urit y and peace in Europe. no t o nly at international level. [ … ITo ac hi eve unity in di versity. Eu rope needs Russia. Russia needs Europe. Ru ssia is an ind ispensable part o f Europe .

Dr. Walter Baa r. a specialist o n de mographical deve lo pments. fo under and di rec to r of the Institute fo r T re nds Research in Austria. observed that low birth rat es cause European population to decrease substantially. making migration inev itable. “Europe as a who le. he concluded. faces th e questions of multiculturalism versus integratio n … It will be in the foc us of polic y mak e rs world w ide how 10 make it easie r fo r yo ung adults in the ir best bio logic al years to found a family.”

Professor Nataliya Selllen ova. associate professor at People’ s Friends hip Uni vers ity of Ru ssia. addre ssed th e three aspects o f the glo bal crisis raised during the ope ning plenary. Challeng ing th e c riticism o f the UN as an ineffec tive bod y. she e mpha sized the responsibilit y o f national go vernments 10 deal w ith conflicts. Then s he insisted on the ro le o f spiritual and moral valu es in educatio n. referring particularly to the Christian fo undation o f Russia. She underlin ed th e importance o f the famil y in bring ing up children as peace mak ers.

Professor Engel T agi rov. Preside nt of the UNESCO Institute for a C ulture of Peace. based in th e Tatarstan capital of Kazan (Ru ssia). compared our time to the era of Great Migration of the 5’”-6’” cent ury - and spoke about om t hallenge to give migrant peoples “not just edutati on but equality”. H e suggested t reating a “Coun til of S ages” that to uld fiUlttion as a think tank , and fo t llS on the UN’s 8 Mill elUulUn Goa ls. Then o n behalf of the International Humanitarian Academy “Emopc-Asia”. he offered awards to UPF leade rs Dr. Walsh. Rev. Tokuno and Jacques Marion. Dr. Anna H rzysca. Ru ssian-born educator living in Poland. e:l:plained th e multi-religious approach to c haracter education adopt ed for th e “My World and r school c urriculu m for adolesce nts. whic h she contributed to write in th e cally 1990’s in Russ ia. Pub lished by the Inte rnational Educational Foundation. the course was widely used in schools in Russia and Eurasian cou nt ri es. translated in severa l languages, It taught moral values from the viewpoint of the four main religions present in Eurasia: C hristian ity. Islam. Judaism and Buddhism, It was then adapted into various c haracte r education programs throughout th e world.

Mr, Rl”ig o To nsbl” rg, th e m ain organizer of “Play Football Make Peate” and of the alumal Panm hltemational Football TOIUllament in EstOlua , shared about “peate tlU’ou gh sports” attivities ol’ galuzed throughout the world, He showed a video of the project initiated by the World Association of NGOs (WANGO). and desc ribed its scope and philosophy. whic h is to bring c haracte r education eleme nts into the football gam e. and e ncourage inte rnationaL int er-ethnic and int erre lig ious harmony through sports.

Prospects for Russiil - Europe Diillogue ilnd Coo periltion

Th e confe rence ended with a session o n th e prospects of a Russia - Europe dia logue , Dr. Van Ee kelen. Dr. Petrovsky and Dr, Walsh each offered final re nections. Dr Van Eekele n shared again his thinking on sec urity. de mocracy. good govern ance. ending w ith a positive note that he did not believe we are in a real global cri sis, that “we made muth progress sinte the cold war”. Dr, Petrovsk y sum med up the conference by re ading a draft reso lution which he asked participants to approve (see addendum), Dr Walsh I’econllncnded tllat we “find the way 10 e mbrace diversit y while also e mbracing the need for common ground and overlapping v alue s” , He unde rlined three po ints of the United States’ experiente wit h unity and dive rsity: the unifying concept of “one nationllllder God”, tll e tradit ion of marriage beyond race or e thnic group. and an emphasis on interfa ith d ialogue .

Th en a young stud ent contestant for the “Mr. and Miss University Beauty Page aut” , BaJ·bara. offered a final son g from the heart. in Russ ian. mov ing the aud ie nce - and the confere nce w as d eclared closed. In th e aft ernoon . panicipan ts from abroad who had some tim e befo re their flight ho me, were in vited by UPF to a to ur of th e Kreml in. its treasu re ho use and the famo us Armo ury C ha mber.

VisiT TO f lu! K nill/in

Resolution Russia- Europe Dialogue Peace and Security in Multicultural Societies at a time of Global Crisis

We. participants of the Russia - Europe Dialogue on Peace and Securit y in r..lulticu ltura l Soc ie ties at a time of G lo bal Crisis. decla re th e imlXlrtance of peace making effo rts in Eu rope and the Eu ras ian reg ion aimed at suplXlrting peace and inte rnational hanllo ny. and constructive dialogue be tween c ultures and c ivilizatio ns.

TIlerefol’C we have to state that the I’Ctent dedaration about the “ failure of the multitullural projetl” in Emope is not only premature, but al so wl’ong in essente. TIle multination al and multic ullUral factors are fundamental to the creatio n of European civili zation. mod ern European valu es and European ide ntity. It is especially timely now. in thi s period of c risis in the political and econo mical development of Europe.

InsuffICient atte ntion to th e illlematio nal and intercultural dimensio n of relatio ns leads to political and econo mic instabilit y. and consequ elllly gene rates conflicts and crises. Recognizing the significance of religio us views in shaping soc ial solidar ity. based on fundame ntal uni versal valu es and moral principles. we need to address the root cause of conflict that originates in the human mind. This leads to dialog ue and reconciliation . and lays a base for peace building and for the consolidatio n of coope ration and harmo ny betwee n religio ns and cultures.

We highly v alue the role of familie s and sthools in tOllSolidating moral values and people’ s educa tion in the mod em multic ultural society. We call upon the community 10 stud y the concrete ex periences of multicultural education in both European and Ru ss ian schools.

We are conce rned about c ritical conflict situations in Europe and Eurasia. including th e zone of confl icts in the South C aucasus that re main s unstable . We call for constru ctive dialogue betwee n all opposite parties within th e w nes o f the Georg ia - Abkhazia conflict and the Nago rny Karabakh conflic t.

We call ulXHl th e community to re me mber th e significance of the historical e xperience of co- existe nc e and co-deve lo pment of the peoples in Russia and the Soviet Unio n. as an integral part of th e European civ ilization e xperie nce. Russ ia as a rightfu l part of Europe. reckons o n a deepe r integration with Europe in the sphere of econo mic s. politics and c ulture.

We amnII th e imlXlrtance of dialog ue between Europe and Russia. w hich w ill finally help to overtome the mutual di strust originating in “cold war” times , and tonsolidate mutual understand ing betwee n nations and peoples based o n common European va lu es. In the name of th is idea we call UlXln all who des ire peace. mutu al understanding and cooperatio n in Europe to join us. and we recko n on joint efforts of govemme nts. parliame nts. NG Os. and th e busi ness work!.