President of Russia: Vladimir Putin held a meeting of Council for Interethnic Relations in Yoshkar-Ola

The President of Russia Vladimir Putin on July 20, 2017, held a meeting of the Council for Interethnic Relations in Yoshkar-Ola. Implementation at regional and municipal level of the State Ethnic Policy Strategy until 2025 was the main item on the agenda.

The Presidential Council for Interethnic Relations was established in 2012 to enhance state policy in this area. The Council is made up of the leaders of Russian ethnic and cultural associations, academics and experts, heads of federal executive and legislative bodies of power.

It has become a fine tradition to hold Council for Interethnic Relations’ meetings in the different regions. This time, we are meeting in Yoshkar-Ola, the capital of Mari El. Let me begin by thanking the people of Mari El for the warmth and hospitality we have met with here.

On our agenda today is an analysis of the implementation of the State Ethnic Policy Strategy at the regional and municipal levels. This Strategy is a document of exceptional importance for a multi-ethnic country such as ours.

As you know, the draft document was broadly discussed. More than 3000 remarks and proposals were taken into account and we outlined the main priorities of preserving Russia’s ethno-cultural diversity, strengthening civic identity and bolstering our country’s spiritual unity.

These are the main areas of work for the authorities at all levels, but these efforts should be even more focused and substantive at the regional and municipal levels. This is natural because the closer to the people you are, the more detailed things become.

Each region has its own peculiarities with regard to interethnic relations, and of course, these peculiarities should be taken into account while at the same time following a common approach to resolving the overall, national ethnic policy tasks.