From October 13 to 15, MGIMO hosted the fourteenth Russian International Studies Association (RISA) Convention. The event was attended by Oleg Mikhalev, Associate Professor of the Department of International Relations and Global Politics of Faculty of International Relations of VSU, and Maxim Kirchanov, Associate Professor of the Department of Regional Studies and International Economies.
The RISA Convention is the largest scientific and practical event in Russia in international relations. This year, the convention was held in parallel with the PriorityFest festival, during which the heads of universities and their project offices could exchange practices and plans implemented as part of the Priority 2030 state program to support Russian universities.
The convention, held under the slogan “World. Beyond the usual”, brought together about 2000 experts, practitioners, scientists, leaders from the academic environment and business, politicians, public opinion leaders in science and education, including from Europe, the post-Soviet space, South-east Asia and Africa. More than a hundred discussions, round tables, and masterclasses took place during the event. Modern international processes, the contribution of universities to territorial and sectoral development, and new opportunities in the process of energy transition and the implementation of the ESG agenda (environment, social policy and corporate governance) were discussed during the event. The discussion was attended by Assistant to President, Andrei Fursenko, Special Representative of the President of the Russian Federation for the Middle East and Africa, Deputy Foreign Minister, Mikhail Bogdanov, Director of the Primakov National Research Institute of World Economy and International Relations, Fyodor Voitolovsky, Head of the ArtMasters National Open Championship of Creative Competences, Borislav Volodin, Head of Federal State Autonomous Scientific Institution "Sociocenter", Irina Zhukova and CEO of RES, Denis Butsaev.
Oleg Mikhalev made a presentation in the panel “30th anniversary of friendship and cooperation agreements between the countries of Central Europe and Russia in the context of new geopolitical realities”. The report was dedicated to the analysis of the economic situation in Poland during this year. Experts from MGIMO, the Institute of Europe of the Russian Academy of Sciences, the Institute of Economics of the Russian Academy of Sciences, the Primakov National Research Institute of World Economy and International Relations considered complex issues of bilateral relations between Russia and the countries of Central Europe, and discussed internal and external challenges of Russia's policy in the region.
Maxim Kirchanov took part in the work in the section "Global history: regional and national components", held jointly with the Institute of World History of the Russian Academy of Sciences. The section discussed issues related to the problems of colonialism, the collapse of empires and the modernization of post-colonial spaces. In addition, Kirchanov participated in the international conference "Russia and ASEAN in the Asia-Pacific: dynamics of cooperation, regional processes and the global context", timed to coincide with the 55th anniversary of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations.
