2025 marks the 25th anniversary of the founding of the Eurasian Economic Community, as well as the 10th anniversary of the Eurasian Economic Union.

At the Museum of the History of the Southern Federal University, representatives of the diplomatic corps of the EAEU countries and experts in the field of international relations discussed achievements, pain points and prospects for the development of cooperation within the framework of Eurasian integration.

Maxim Bondarev, SFedU Vice Rector for Project and International Affairs, noted at a briefing that it is impossible to talk about strengthening economic cooperation without simultaneously developing local economic centers, including the Rostov agglomeration, which can become one of the centers of economic, scientific, technical, and educational cooperation between the EAEU countries. Its advantageous logistical position, well—developed industry and infrastructure, and favorable investment climate make Rostov a promising hub for the EAEU countries. The availability of communication with the EAEU countries is already ensured by joint projects, thereby Rostov will provide for the needs of economic interaction networks in the future.

Viktor Kharchenko, representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry in Rostov-on-Don, noted that, in addition to international scientific cooperation, the role of universities in establishing contacts with foreign partners is to train future elites who will be able to synchronize the interests of their countries with the common objectives of the initiated Greater Eurasia integration project. This project needs to be promoted among young people and students for a very long time.

Viktor Alekseevich added that the point of contact between the media and diplomatic missions is the creation of an international pool of experts on topical issues. According to him, the interaction of the media with experts from different countries will lead to a variety of opinions and analyses in the media space. Thus, foreign media can send journalistic inquiries, for example, to scientists of the Southern Federal University through their embassies and consulates, and Rostov journalists to foreign experts through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation.

Using the example of the Rostov region, the representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry in Rostov-on-Don spoke about the potential of Russian regions in international diplomacy, noting that the federal center positively assesses the international ambitions of the regions. The Russian Foreign Ministry considers regional diplomacy as a new resource for promoting Russian interests in the world. At the end of the meeting, Viktor Kharchenko called Rostov-on-Don the diplomatic capital of Southern Russia, noting that the Southern Federal University and its international projects play a significant role in this.

Dmitry Shkurd, Acting head of the Consulate General of the Republic of Belarus in Rostov-on-Don, noted that in the modern world, the strongest international relations are formed during the joint work of two or more countries within the framework of joint projects and programs in such areas as information and communication technologies, artificial intelligence, electric transport, microelectronics, radio engineering and new materials. — everything that Southern Federal University does.

During the discussion, the topic of the development of the union state of Belarus and Russia was touched upon. It was noted that 2022 marked the 25th anniversary of the signing of the relevant agreement, during which time significant progress has been made in various areas stipulated by the agreement.

Honorary Consul of the Republic of Abkhazia in Rostov-on-Don Adik Arshba reflected on the future of the EAEU and Abkhazia's possible accession to it. The speaker expressed confidence in the union's ability to cope with the upcoming challenges and added that increasing the number of participants would improve coordination and solve current problems.

Adik Dinvarovich expressed gratitude to the Southern Federal University for the opportunity of such a meeting and stressed that SFedU is one of the main universities where most applicants from Abkhazia dream of entering.

Consul of the Republic of Uzbekistan in Rostov-on-Don Farkhodbek Zufarov paid special attention to the issues of economic and intercultural interaction, as well as the role of scientific and educational diplomacy in strengthening interregional ties.

In addition to journalists, students and experts from Southern Federal University asked diplomats their questions: Maria Ponomareva, moderator of the meeting, Director of the Institute of History and International Relations at SFedU, Elena Serdyukova, Director of the Institute of Philosophy and Socio-Political Sciences at SFedU, Andrey Bedrick, Director of the Institute of Sociology and Regional Studies at SFedU, and other representatives of the SFedU faculty, whose research work is directly related to with the study of the international agenda.

During the dialogue, journalists asked a large number of questions to the briefing participants, including whether the EAEU has made progress in deepening Eurasian integration, what challenges of Eurasian integration can be predicted for the next ten years, whether the EAEU is ready to respond to them, and how the university can join this process and participate in the implementation of the tasks set by the President of Russia.