“Global security remains the paramount concern, particularly at this juncture, when the notorious Doomsday Clock continues to tick ever closer to midnight. It is imperative that we prevent such an outcome. We are resolutely engaged in efforts to avert catastrophe,” Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov warned on June 25. “The very possibility of a third world war has now become almost routine in discourse. This is particularly tragic in a context where revanchist, aggressive, and belligerent sentiments are once again rearing their heads in full force across Europe. As though two world wars—let alone the numerous lesser conflicts of previous centuries—were insufficient for the current leadership of the European Union.”
In the face of this danger, Lavrov called for “politicians, diplomats, scholars, and civil society” around the world “to mobilize” for discussions of the principles upon which international relations must be based for a durable world peace—a call in accord with what Schiller Institute founder Helga Zepp-LaRouche has been insisting on since November 2022, when she proposed 10 Principles for a New International Security and Development Architecture.
Lavrov made this call in Ashgabat, while he was addressing members of Turkmenistan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the faculty and students of its Institute of International Relations, when asked to comment on Turkmenistan’s proposal in September 2023 that the United Nations start “discussions on developing a UN-sponsored global security strategy,” made by President Sedar Berdimuhamedov to the UN General Assembly. The questioner explained that Turkmenistan proposes three key areas be addressed: the “principles of preventive diplomacy as a tool to prevent and neutralize challenges and threats, as well as their root causes; leveraging the potential of positive neutrality; and restoring the culture of a trust-based dialogue.”
(Turkmenistan’s concept of “positive neutrality” is a constitutional provision that its foreign relations must adhere to the principles of “peacefulness, non-interference into affairs of other states, respect of their sovereignty and territorial integrity, nonparticipation in the international military organizations and agreements.")
Lavrov answered: “Chinese President Xi Jinping also put forward an initiative in February 2023, addressing global security. This initiative encompasses a set of principles applicable to resolving any crisis. The most pivotal of these principles stresses the necessity of addressing the root causes of any conflict before attempting to resolve it….
“The emphasis within President Xi Jinping’s concept on the imperative to eliminate the root causes of any conflict, should we wish to resolve it, is more relevant than ever. These two initiatives are aligned in their direction. Likewise, Russian President Vladimir Putin’s initiative to establish a Eurasian security architecture follows the same path. There is—and will be—no competition between such proposals. They share a common conceptual foundation, and the crucial task is to mobilize the international community through practical measures involving politicians, diplomats, scholars, and civil society to consider these initiatives and work towards formulating concrete recommendations for adoption at the interstate level.”
Russia participates in the annual International Conference on Eurasian Security hosted by Belarus, and Russia is “fully prepared to participate in similar forums organized by Turkmenistan” around its initiative. “As the saying goes, you can never have too much of a good thing. We wholeheartedly welcome all constructive efforts aimed at bridging differences and preventing them from escalating into confrontation.”
