Russian Orthodox Church representatives attend conference of compatriots in Shanghai
On March 19-20, 2019, the 13th regional conference of Russian compatriots’ organizations in Asia ‘Russian-Speaking Diasporas for Cooperation’ took place in Shanghai. It united representatives of Russian compatriots’ organizations in China, Mongolia, Japan, Thailand, Singapore, Cambodia, Nepal and the Republic of Korea.
The Russian Orthodox Church was represented by Archimandrite Alexander (Zarkeshev), rector of the St. Nicholas Cathedral in Teheran, Iran; Rev. Ioann Shelokov, rector of the Orthodoxy community in Shanghai; and D. Petrovsky, Department for External Church Relations (DECR), Moscow Patriarchate.
The participants discussed the preservation of spiritual values and cultural identity in the situation of integration into the society of their countries of residence, further consolidation of Russian-speaking communities, work of youth movements and associations, cooperation with civic societies, as well as work to support the Russian-speaking environment and Russian culture among compatriots, preservation of historical memory and opposition to attempts to distort history.
Among the attendees were also members of the Russian Council of the Federation, Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs officials, Russian consuls in Asian countries and diplomats.
The next conference is planned to take place in 2020 in India.
DECR Communication Service