International Russian Language Organisation

The International Organization for the Support and Promotion of the Russian language (Russian: Международная организация по поддержке и продвижению русского языка) under the auspices of the Commonwealth of Independent States is an organization that the CIS Council of Heads of State in Astana decided to create on 14 October 2022 in support of a proposal by President of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev.[1]

This organisation will become an separate international structure and will have a legal personality with headquarters in Sochi, Russia. [2]

Concept and documents

According to the approved concept in 2022[3]:

After gaining independence in the CIS participant states, a natural process of the rise and development of the languages of the peoples of the Commonwealth began, which became an integral element of state-building and the consolidation of society.

At the same time, an important unifying factor of the Commonwealth participant States has been and remains the common cultural, humanitarian and linguistic space, within the framework of which has developed an optimal balance between the harmonious development of the languages of the peoples of the Commonwealth and the Russian language, which is the working language of the CIS and contributes to the preservation of close cultural and humanitarian ties and the access of all CIS participant States to a huge layer of information in the field of culture, history, science and technology.

At present, the Russian language is a serious consolidating factor in maintaining friendly relations between the CIS participant States. The forthcoming year of 2023 by the Decision of the CIS Council of Heads of State of 18 December 2020 is declared the Year of the Russian language as a language of interethnic communication in the CIS.

The Russian language enjoys great popularity far beyond the Commonwealth. According to various data, it is spoken by more than 200 million citizens in different countries of the world.

According to a study conducted in 2021 by the Pushkin Institute of the Russian Language, the number of speakers in the world ranks Russian eighth, its status in international organizations fourth, the number of websites on the Internet second, and the number of scientific publications in the international databases Web of Science and Scopus fifth.

Being one of the official languages of the United Nations, the Russian language acts as an instrument of global communications, including in solving international and regional problems, adopting documents within the CIS, SCO, CICA, CSTO, EAEU and other structures.

The meeting of the expert group on the development of draft documents establishing and regulating the activities of the International Organization for the Support and Promotion of the Russian Language, established under the auspices of the Commonwealth of Independent States, was held on 13 - 14 July 2023 at the CIS headquarters. Representatives of Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and the CIS Executive Committee participated in the meeting and considered amendments to the proposed documents.[4]

Signing

On 13 October 2023, the CIS Council of Heads of State signed the Treaty on the Establishment of the International Organisation for the Russian Language and adopted the Statement on Support and Promotion of the Russian Language as a Language of Interethnic Communication.

The goals of the organisation will be to strengthen relations of friendship, good-neighbourliness, mutual understanding and mutually beneficial cooperation between countries, including on the issues of maintaining and promoting Russian as a language of interstate communication, its use as a means of access to world databases of knowledge and data in the field of culture, literature, history, as well as strengthening the status of Russian as an official and/or working language of international and regional intergovernmental organisations and structures. The organisation will support quality education in Russian, promote the training of pedagogical and scientific personnel in the fields of ‘Russian language and literature’ and ‘Russian as a foreign language’ and form a pool of specialists in this field. Its tasks also include interaction with educational, cultural, scientific organisations and public associations of the countries. It is planned that the organisation will hold international scientific conferences, book exhibitions, dictations on the Russian language, organise an exchange of experience in the examination of textbooks and teaching aids in the subjects ‘Russian language’ and ‘Russian literature’.

In its statement on supporting and promoting the Russian language as a language of inter-ethnic communication, the CIS Council of Heads of State noted the importance of supporting the Russian language and developing its role as a language of international communication, as one of the official languages of the United Nations and a number of other international organisations, and of preserving and promoting the unique linguistic, historical and cultural heritage of the CIS participating States. The importance of the Russian language in strengthening the common cultural and humanitarian space of the Commonwealth is emphasised. The statement reaffirms the commitment to the use of the Russian language in mutual contacts and on the platforms of international organisations and forums, and stresses the intolerance of discrimination on linguistic grounds. The statement should be communicated to the United Nations and other international organisations. [5]

See also

• List of countries and territories where Russian is an official language
• Geographical distribution of Russian speakers
• List of official languages by institution

References

1. "Решение о международной организации по поддержке и продвижению русского языка, создаваемой под эгидой Содружества Независимых Государств от 14 октября 2022 года" [Decision on an international organisation for the support and promotion of the Russian language to be established under the auspices of the Commonwealth of Independent States of 14 October 2022]. Портал СНГ (in Russian).
2. "Главы стран СНГ подписали соглашение о создании Международной организации по русскому языку" [Heads of CIS countries signed an agreement on the creation of the International Organisation for the Russian Language]. Kazakhstan Today.
3. "Концепция создания под эгидой Содружества Независимых Государств международной организации по поддержке и продвижению русского языка" [Concept of creating an international organisation for the support and promotion of the Russian language under the auspices of the Commonwealth of Independent States]. Портал СНГ.
4. "Новости СНГ - Эксперты стран СНГ доработали Договор об учреждении Международной организации по русскому языку" [CIS experts finalise the Treaty on the Establishment of the International Organisation for the Russian Language]. Портал СНГ.
5. "Новости СНГ - Совет глав государств СНГ подписал Договор об учреждении Международной организации по русскому языку и принял Заявление о поддержке и продвижении русского языка как языка межнационального общения" [The CIS Council of Heads of State signed the Treaty on the Establishment of the International Organisation for the Russian Language and adopted a Statement on Supporting and Promoting Russian as a Language of Inter-Ethnic Communication]. Портал СНГ.

External links

• Heads of State Council of the Commonwealth of Independent States held a meeting in Bishkek. They signed the Treaty on the Establishment of the International Russian Language Organisation
• The CIS decided to create an international organisation for the Russian language
• List of documents signed at the meeting of the CIS Council of Heads of State