I welcome the distinguished readers of the newsletter and I hope that the information presented in it will be useful to the broadest circle of people interested in the problems of parliamentary diplomacy and parliamentary support for the foreign policy course of President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin.
The activities of the Committee on International Affairs cover very important issues related to the parliamentary dimension of the implementation of Russia’s foreign policy, international contacts of the State Duma, work in interparliamentary organizations, as well as relations with parliaments of other states.
One of the most important areas of the Committee’s work is the preparation for ratification of the international treaties of the Russian Federation. The draft federal law on ratification is discussed at the meetings of the Committee for its conformity with the national interests of the Russian Federation before the draft document is submitted to the plenary session for consideration by the State Duma.
The next line of work of the Committee on Foreign Affairs is implemented directly within the competence provided for by the Constitution of the Russian Federation – the exercise of a representative function by the parliament. Deputies – members of the Committee prepare drafts of statements and appeals of the State Duma on the most topical issues of international politics, form their own assessments on behalf of the Committee on International Affairs, organize parliamentary hearings and round tables on issues related to the Committee.
One of the main functions of the Committee is the implementation of parliamentary diplomacy, which is the most important channel for international cooperation and integration for any state, an effective tool for establishing working and trusting relations with foreign colleagues. The development of interparliamentary interaction takes place within the framework of working visits of deputies – members of the Committee at the invitation of foreign partners, as well as during their participation in sessions and sessions of inter-parliamentary organizations. The Committee’s daily work includes meetings in the State Duma with delegations of foreign parliaments and other state and non-state structures.
In addition, in accordance with paragraph “m” of Article 83 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation, the President of Russia appoints and recalls, after consultation with the relevant committees or commissions of the chambers of the Federal Assembly, diplomatic representatives of the Russian Federation in foreign states and international organizations. In the State Duma, this constitutional mission is entrusted to the International Affairs Committee, which considers at its meetings the candidatures of diplomatic representatives and issues its reasoned conclusion, which is sent to the President of the Russian Federation.
Chairman of the Committee Leonid Slutsky