English
Русский
"Belgorod Manifesto" is a document formulated as an outcome of the III International Forum "Truth and Morality - a Strategic Resource of Public Diplomacy". The Forum was held on October 10-12, 2023 in Belgorod.
The Forum was initiated and organized by the International Union of Non-Governmental Organizations "Eurasian Peoples' Assembly", the Institute for Cultural Diplomacy in the United Arab Emirates and the Belgorod State Technological University named after V. G. Shukhov with the support of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation, the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of the Russian Federation, The Alexander Gorchakov Public Diplomacy Fund and the Association of Arab Universities.
For three days, 150 parliamentarians, heads of major universities, international public organizations and prominent public figures from more than 40 countries of Eurasia, Africa, Latin America and the Asia-Pacific region discussed the most important issues of the Eurasian and global agenda. They discussed the further development of public diplomacy through innovative approaches to cultural, humanitarian, scientific, educational and business co-operation.
The forum participants considered both opportunities and risks in the development of the modern world, socio-economic and cultural and moral structures of global interactions. At the same time, they discussed the need to develop strategic approaches to ensure a safe and sustainable world order.
Adhering to the civilizational analysis of the progressive development of mankind, formation of its value and cultural codes, the role of education, science, culture and information as meaning-forming spheres and regulators of the unity and security of the world was emphasized.
Representatives of all participating countries drew attention to the worldview instability of the current unipolar world order, which is dangerous for life in both the East and the West, as well as the threat of the spread of ideas and concepts of national exceptionalism that are hostile to humanity.
Forum participants are convinced: the world cannot and should not be unipolar, for strategic choices cannot be filled with national objectives, and the security of each nation must be considered in the logic of the management of self-developing holistic systems.
The world needs a deep awareness of long-term prospects, economic stability and at the same time the preservation of spiritual, cultural and moral values that underpin the national identity of each people.
The formation of new imperatives of the strategic agenda, agreed upon with representatives of more than 40 countries of Eurasia, Africa, Latin America and the Asia-Pacific region present at the Forum, is primarily related to the understanding of morality and truth as a strategic resource for making the right decisions concerning the establishment of a sustainable and secure multipolar world. Public diplomacy can and should play a special role in this process, preventing the weakening of humanitarian ties and a superficial attitude towards humanitarian values, which are formidable symptoms of the destruction of the social world order.
Using the tools of public diplomacy based on high moral values, it is necessary to take an active part in understanding strategic approaches where truth and morality are the main regulators of new strategies for the development of modern civilization.
The world needs humanitarian modernization as a preventive measure of diplomatic interaction at different levels towards the formation of evidence-based dialogue platforms, understanding and consent, in the establishing a new world order without violating the naturally established diversity of development and ensuring further equal interaction of all cultures and peoples as a single subject of humanity.
As a result of the Forum, the participants formulated and approved the following proposals:
1. Support the Annual International Forum of Public Diplomacy, which has become one of the authoritative international dialogue platforms on strengthening cooperation between countries and peoples through the prism of morality.
2. Summarize the experience of sociocultural dynamics, practices and technologies of public diplomacy in the countries of Eurasia, Africa, Latin America and the Asia-Pacific region for the further application of this experience in new protocols and models of interaction in the modern world.
3. Promote an adequate perception of the cultural and historical experience accumulated by past generations as a necessary condition for the implementation of the principles of public diplomacy in public consciousness.
4. Increase the participation of youth in decision-making processes, thus contributing to the fulfilment of UNESCO's mission and mandate to develop a young generation of responsible leaders aimed at building a peaceful, prosperous and sustainable future.
5. Promote sustainable development and youth empowerment through research, learning and capacity-building, which are among UNESCO's key priorities.
6. Develop public diplomacy through modern mechanisms of business, scientific, educational, humanitarian cooperation, popularization of the best models of multifaceted partnership among the international community.
7. Form sustainable links and pool of partners through Associations and Unions of Soviet and Russian universities alumni in the partner countries of the Eurasian Peoples’ Assembly
8. Consolidate the proposals put forward by the participants as a basis for the IV Public Diplomacy Forum to be held in the UAE in 2024.
Full text of the Belgorod Manifesto.