Russia and Republika Srpska sign education partnership deal
Russia and Republika Srpska, an autonomous region within Bosnia and Herzegovina, have signed a memorandum to expand cooperation in education. The ceremony took place on the sidelines of the Third International Forum of Ministers of Education, 'Shaping the Future', in the Russian city of Kazan.
The deal was signed by Russian Education Minister Sergey Kravtsov and Republika Srpska's minister of education and culture, Zeljka Stojicic, on Wednesday. Under the agreement, both parties committed to closer cooperation in general education, vocational training, and further vocational education. They will also exchange information on international conferences, seminars, and education-related events hosted in Russia and Republika Srpska.
The sides also discussed deepening bilateral ties at the forum.
'I would like to express my gratitude to the Srpska side for their active cooperation. We have already opened five Russian language open education centers in Republika Srpska. Around 500 citizens have studied in them over two years,' Kravtsov said.
Stojicic noted that the two sides have made notable progress in expanding Russian language instruction in Republika Srpska.
'We have made great progress in Russian language studies. The number of schools where the Russian language is studied has increased,' she stated, noting that Russia's Tula University was helpful with this endeavor. According to Kravtsov, the university has been working with Republika Srpska's education sector, and signed agreements with the region's specialized ministries in 2023.
A key part of the agreement signed by the parties includes promoting Russian language studies in Republika Srpska through competitions, Olympiads, and cultural events, as well as encouraging the use of electronic education resources. The two also pledged to support student talent development, organize children's recreation programs, and hold reciprocal fairs, seminars, and exhibitions.
This year's 'Shaping the Future' forum – held June 11 to 12 – brought together delegations from 50 states, including education ministers and officials from the UAE, Belarus, Abkhazia, South Ossetia, Myanmar, Laos, the Central African Republic, Cameroon, Burkina Faso, and Zimbabwe. The agenda focused on global challenges in education, including digital transformation, AI, online learning, inclusion, and the evolving role of teachers.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Russia Today
2 hours ago
- Russia Today
Western use of interest from Russia's frozen assets is theft – top banker to RT
The use of the interest generated by Russian assets frozen in the West amounts to theft, Andrey Kostin, the CEO of major Russian lender VTB, told RT on Saturday on the sidelines of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum. Kostin condemned the actions of the West, the EU in particular, in regard to Russian assets as 'dangerous' games that could eventually be used by others against them. Western countries froze an estimated $300 billion worth of Russian sovereign funds following the escalation of the Ukraine conflict in February 2022. Some $213 billion of the assets are held by the Belgium-based settlement house Euroclear. 'It is a very dangerous thing to play such games. You start against one – tomorrow someone will use it against you,' Kostin warned. The use of proceeds from the assets, which have been repeatedly funneled for procurement of military aid for Ukraine, is grossly illegal and amounts to theft, Kostin noted. While various parties in the West have repeatedly mulled the possibility of seizing the assets themselves, they have failed to find a legal mechanism to do so because there is none, he added. 'This is theft. They are using interest now, but interest is the same money of the owner as the principal debt,' he stressed. Moscow has repeatedly condemned the freezing of its assets and has hinted at possible retaliatory measures against Western investments and property in Russia. Last October, Finance Minister Anton Siluanov warned that Moscow would retaliate in kind and start using the interest generated by the assets of 'unfriendly' countries and organizations held in Russia for its own needs. Kostin has long been skeptical about the prospects of Russia ever seeing its frozen assets again. Late last year, he suggested that the funds will never be returned under the pretext of Ukraine's purported 'reconstruction.' 'In the West, they say, let's pay for the reconstruction of Ukraine from the reserves. And they will draw up such a bill that even the reserves will not be enough,' Kostin said at the time.
Russia Today
4 hours ago
- Russia Today
Trump believes only negotiated agreement can resolve Russia-Ukraine conflict
US President Donald Trump believes a negotiated agreement between Russia and Ukraine is the only viable path to ending the conflict between the two countries, according to State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce. Trump's efforts to mediate a truce between Russia and Ukraine contributed to the countries restarting direct negotiations in Türkiye last month – talks that Kiev abandoned in 2022 to focus on its military efforts. Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Friday that while Moscow is not seeking an unconditional surrender, Kiev must acknowledge the 'realities on the ground,' and that its negotiating position worsens with each passing day. In a press briefing on Friday, Bruce was asked whether those remarks mean that Moscow is not serious about the talks, and how Washington would respond. 'As I've mentioned before, during negotiations, things sometimes progress, things change. That's the whole point of negotiations and conversations: You signal how long you're generally willing to wait, but you also know if someone is serious,' she said, noting, 'At the same time, we've heard some very blunt comments by President Trump about President Putin.' That's where we've landed at this point in comments from both the president and secretary of state – that the only way this is going to end is for the two parties to meet and come to a conclusion and a decision, and some kind of an agreement. She added that while the US remains Ukraine's 'biggest supporter,' the process of peace negotiations is complex and constantly evolving. 'We are clearly making our presence and our care about the situation known... but this is not about reacting to a single quote or online statement,' she said. Asked about Putin's assertion that Russia now holds a 'strategic advantage' in the conflict, Bruce declined to comment on potential punitive measures or sanctions, reiterating: 'We're not going to listen to what [Russia] says – we're going to watch what they do.' 'Only the president can make the decision about how to proceed. Only he knows all the elements about what's important and how we're going to make a difference,' she said. 'As I term it… there is one guiding hand to the choices that we make. And that would include Russia, Ukraine, and every conflict he's trying to stop.' The spokeswoman added that direct engagement between Moscow and Washington continues behind the scenes, involving 'months now of dealing with the parties directly,' and argued that Trump, as 'the most powerful leader in the world right now,' is better positioned than the public or press to assess the situation.
Russia Today
9 hours ago
- Russia Today
Russia conducts heavy missile and drone strike on Ukrainian military airfield
The Russian military struck a military airfield and energy infrastructure in Ukraine in an overnight attack involving missiles and kamikaze drones, the Defense Ministry in Moscow has reported. In a statement on Saturday, the ministry said that the attack, which was carried out with high-precision air-, land-, and sea-based weapons, as well as explosive-laden unmanned aerial vehicles, targeted the infrastructure of a military airfield and an energy facility that supplied Ukrainian forces in Donbass with fuel. 'The goal of the strike has been accomplished. All designated targets have been hit,' Russian military officials reported, without disclosing the location of the targets. In a separate statement on Saturday, the ministry claimed that Russian warplanes, drones, missiles, and artillery had destroyed several UAV production workshops, as well as ammunition depots in Ukraine. Ukraine, meanwhile, reported a massive Russian strike on energy infrastructure in the city of Kremenchuk in Poltava Region. The Ukrainian military estimated that Russia deployed nearly 300 kamikaze drones, and eight missiles in its overnight attack. In recent weeks, Russia has launched a series of strikes, targeting Ukrainian military-related facilities, after Kiev significantly ramped up its own cross-border drone strikes. Moscow has described the escalation as Kiev's attempt to derail the ongoing Russia-Ukraine peace talks. On Tuesday, Russia's Defense Ministry claimed that a combined strike, similar in style to the one reported on Saturday, hit military-industrial facilities in Kiev Region, as well as in the Ukrainian-controlled part of Zaporozhye Region.
