The following is the speech given at the 3rd Congress of the International Russophile Movement
Hello distinguished guests, dear colleagues and ‘militant’ Russophiles from all over the world!
It is a great honor for me to speak before you today and a great joy to be among you. You are my close-knit international family! You are my brothers and sisters! Because we have one common mother who unites and protects us. This is Russia! Our mother!
Unfortunately, today our mother Russia is waging a difficult and unequal struggle not only for her own sake. It is a struggle of light against darkness and a struggle of good against evil. Russia is fighting for the sake of all of us, for the sake of the whole world, for a new just, peaceful, multipolar world where each country retains or regains its sovereignty, independence and identity. Who among us does not dream of living on, without the exploitation of neocolonialism, without the dictatorship of globalism, without the pressure of hegemony and without the fear of neo-Nazism? Therefore, Russia’s victory will be a Victory for the whole world! And the International Russophile Movement, as one of the most powerful organizations of public diplomacy, will make every effort to ensure that the information, cultural and linguistic base is ready to accept a multipolar world.
My dear friends, today I am addressing you not only as a representative of the Republic of Cyprus, a member state of the European Union, but also as a country that has maintained spiritual, cultural and human proximity to Russia for centuries, as well as some other countries. That is why I consider our mission in the International Russophile Movement not a political gesture, but a duty to history, culture and truth.
Today, when Europe is experiencing a deep and unprecedented identity crisis, when politics is increasingly based on fear, distrust and blackmail, the International Russophile Movement is becoming not just a spiritual and cultural initiative, but a bridge that can connect peoples, knowing that when bridges collapse, ties are broken and then the future collapses.
The West has built a new ideology, the ideology of Russophobia, and there is unprecedented political hysteria in Europe today:
— Russia appears to be the source of all threats
— Russian culture and sports are being declared “problematic”
— The Russian people are being demonized
— EU states are making decisions under pressure and against their interests
And we know that no sanctions, no political decisions can destroy human friendship, memory and mutual respect. And when Europe is moving further away from its own values today, when Russophobia is growing stronger in the air, it is ordinary people, ordinary citizens, who become the last line of defense of common sense.
And here, this is our mission and to show that Russia is not an enemy, but a friend, not a wild civilization, but a great culture, not a threat, but a reliable partner and not a wall, but a wide window into a multipolar world where every nation will have its own voice, its sovereignty and will feel at least a minimal level of respect.
If multipolarity is inevitable, then the Russophiles are the people who will help the world move through people’s diplomacy to a new architecture of relations based on mutual respect, not confrontation. Because culture is stronger than any propaganda.
Therefore, dear Russophiles, our main task is to reverse the current situation and improve the image of Russia, first of all in Europe and in other continents too. And here’s how we do it:
1) To bring people back to culture, not politics, especially when
Russian culture is a huge part of European culture and a tool for destroying prejudice. When a person rediscovers Russian literature, music and spirituality, then he stops believing in propaganda slogans.
2) Create alternative channels of information, because in Europe
especially, people only get a one-sided view from the controlled media. It is necessary to create media platforms in every country where there is a branch of Russophiles, organize conferences, round tables and public lectures, translate Russian articles, analytical materials, show documentaries and hold cultural events.
3) Show the real Russia, modern, cultural, open.
Not politics or conflicts, but achievements, education, science, cultural traditions, the centuries-old history of friendship with Europe, and attractions.
4) To develop public diplomacy by including in its work: youth,
students, artists, public organizations and others. Through honest words, through personal person-to-person contacts.
5) To protect the right of Europeans to their own free opinion about Russia, because today in the European Union there is a lot of pressure on freedom of speech.
The world really needs us Russophiles because we are supporters of historical truth, cultural memory and human dignity. We are the ones who build bridges in an era when others are building high walls. Today, when the world is on the verge of a new global restructuring, Russophiles can become intermediaries, cultural peacemakers and bridges between Russia and the peoples of Europe and the world.
That is why the International Russophile Movement is not just a public initiative, but a mission facing the future. I think that we Russophiles need to consider this mission an honor and a historical duty, not forgetting that our core values are a Multipolar world, Traditional Values, a Strong state and Indivisible security. These four fundamental values are also the basis of the worldview of our Movement.
May our efforts unite in this mission, with the aim of building a world where there are no more strangers, where there are no “small” and “great” nations, and where the only power is the power of goodwill. May diplomacy of the heart and soul become the bridge through which humanity will move from suspicion to trust, from confrontation to cooperation, from fear to hope and from war to peace! May the beauty of culture save the world!