Minnikhanov in Ufa: “The main task of today's meeting is to show the powerful perspective Bashkortostan”
Talia Minullina's new hijab and Russian technologies for the Islamic world at the next Russia-Islamic World Strategic Vision Group
The next meeting of the Russia — Islamic World Strategic Vision Group takes place in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, in March 2020, the head of the Tatarstan Investment Development Agency Talia Minullina presented to the public a new Muslim attire, and President of Tatarstan Rustam Minnikhanov paid compliments to Bashkiria and promised to share Russian technologies with the East. The correspondent of Realnoe Vremya found out in Ufa, where the fifth forum of the strategic vision group was finishing.
Talia Minullina’s new hijab
The fifth meeting of the Russia — Islamic World Strategic Vision Group has recently finished in Ufa. The plenary part of the forum, which was attended by President of Tatarstan Rustam Minnikhanov and Head of Bashkortostan Radiy Khabirov, was held on 29 November in the Toratau congress hall. The forum was dedicated to the topic “Interfaith Harmony: The experience of Russia and the member states of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation” and timed to the 50th anniversary of the OIC.
On this day, the forum gathered a larger audience than on Thursday, consisting of representatives of the administrative elite of the two republics. Even before the meeting started, Head of the Investment Development Agency of the Republic of Tatarstan Talia Minullina sat at the round table — that time in a wide cream-coloured dress and a scarf to match the main garment.
Chief of Staff of Tatarstan President's Administration Asgat Safarov sat next to Alexander Sidyakin, occasionally talking to his Bashkir counterpart. Later, Chairman of the State Assembly — Kurultai of Bashkiria Konstantin Tolkachev entered the hall. Senator Lilia Gumerova was sitting bored alone at the table, at the other end of the hall there sat alone State Duma Deputy from Bashkortostan Ildar Bikbayev. But Vice-Speaker of the State Assembly Rustam Ishmukhametov and another State Duma Deputy from Bashkiria Inga Yumasheva communicated lively. Later, in the hall there appeared First Deputy Prime Minister of Bashkortostan Andrey Nazarov.
Chairman of the Russian Council of Muftis Ravil Gaynutdin sent to Ufa First Deputy Rushan Abbyasov instead of himself, who was seated between Mufti of Tatarstan Kamil Samigullin and Mufti of Bashkortostan Aynur Birgalin. Chairman of the Muslim Spiritual Board of Russia and Supreme Mufti Talgat Tadzhuddin embraced with metropolitans from Kazan and Ufa Feofan and Nikon, shook hands with Chief Rabbi of Bashkortostan Dan Krichevsky, then went to greet Arab friends and did not sit down for a long time in the chair assigned to him. Samigullin throughout the meeting read the Koran from a gadget, quietly moving his lips, and Feofan sat with closed eyes: some journalists considered that the metropolitan dozed off, others — that he was silently praying.
For the second day in a row, Deputy Chairman of the Federation Council Committee on International Affairs, Deputy Chairman of the Russia — Islamic World Strategic Vision Group Farit Mukhametshin was entrusted to moderate the meeting.
“Russia is ready to share technologies”
The plenary part of the meeting was opened by President of Tatarstan Rustam Minnikhanov, who heads the strategic vision group. He read the greeting of Russian President Vladimir Putin and thanked the head of the Republic of Bashkortostan Radiy Khabirov for the hospitality and organization of the event. The head of Tatarstan also congratulated the OIC leadership on the 50th anniversary of the organization, reminding that Russia received the observer status in 2005.
“We should use the potential of our relations more actively. We need to jointly improve the effectiveness of the fight against terrorism and cooperation in a number of other areas, such as the protection of traditional moral values, care for socially vulnerable members of society and ethnic minorities, the fight against natural and man-made disasters and environmental problems. Russia is ready to share technologies and participate in the training of national personnel in science-intensive areas — in the development of the nuclear industry, astronautics, IT sphere,” said Minnikhanov.
He added that the attempts to establish a unipolar world have not been successful. There is a tendency towards multipolarity in international relations. In these conditions, according to the Tatarstan president, “the Russian civilization is closest to the Islamic one”. At the same time, Russia and the Islamic world should be an example of civilizational partnership.
Minnikhanov also noted what experience the Russian regions such as Dagestan and Chechnya can share. Bashkortostan, according to him, is interesting for its socio-economic achievements, and Tatarstan is “an example of parity of attention to Islam and Orthodoxy”.
As for the next meeting of the Russia — Islamic World Strategic Vision Groups, the head of Tatarstan confirmed the words of Permanent Representative of the Russian Federation to the OIC Ramazan Abdulatipov, who said on Thursday that it would be held in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. The former head of Dagestan said then that the forum would be held presumably in March 2020.
“Ufa is the official centre of Russian Islam”
Radiy Khabirov greeted the audience in Muslim assalamu alaikum and, starting with the traditional Basmala, focusing in his speech on the achievements of the Ummah of Bashkortostan. The head of Bashkortostan called the region “a model of multinational, multi-confessional Russia” and “the official centre of Russian Islam”.
“More than 230 years ago, Empress Catherine II chose Ufa as the official centre of Russian Islam. I think she saw in the calm and confident character of the peoples of Bashkortostan reliable friends and brave soldiers-defenders of the fatherland. Starting from the legendary madrassas Galiya and Usmaniya, the traditions of classical Islamic education have been strong in Bashkortostan. Graduates of the Russian Islamic University serve in many regions of the country,” he proudly stated.
Later, during a media scrum, Rustam Minnikhanov paid a compliment to his Bashkir colleague.
“The main task of today's meeting is to show the powerful promising republic such as Bashkortostan. This is a great opportunity to invite our foreign and Russian colleagues to the meeting. More than 20 million Muslims live in Russia. The Islamic world is a huge economic potential, huge markets,” the Tatarstan leader said.
He noted that initially he wanted to hold the summit in another place, but “it did not work out a little” there. Then Khabirov volunteered to help and organized the meeting.
The head of the Republic of Bashkortostan thanked Minnikhanov for his trust, saying that the “fraternal republics” unite their economic potential, which makes them even stronger.
“For us, it is a great honour and opportunity including to assert itself, to participate in big integration processes which are taking place in the Islamic world,” the head of the Republci of Bashkortostan summarized.
At the end, the presentation of the national award of the Russia — Islamic World Strategic Vision Group took place. The award takes place every year is given “for the contribution to the multiplication and dissemination of knowledge about Islam, the achievement of mutual understanding between the peoples of Russia and the harmonization of state-confessional relations”.
The award fund is 500,000 rubles. It was contested by 32 people, and the winners were Rushan Abbyasov and Kamil Samigullin. The first was awarded for a two-volume edition of the manuscript by Mahmoud al-Bulgari in Russian, and the Chairman of MSB RT — for the preparation of the tafsir (the translation of the Koran) in the Tatar and Russian languages, presented on the first day of the forum.
