Lavrov in Belgrade for Non-Aligned conference

Lavrov
Alexander Zemlianichenko/Pool via REUTERS

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov will take part in the 60th anniversary meeting of the Non-Aligned Movement in Belgrade on October 11, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zaharova said on Thursday.

“Russia will take part in the Non-Aligned Movement as an observer for the first time,” she said adding that the observer status was granted at the initiative of Russian President Vladimir Putin. “That is confirmation of the similar approach to global problems by Russia and the movement and provides an opportunity to expand the partnership,” Zaharova said. She said that Lavrov will read a letter from President Putin at the meeting.

The Non-Aligned Movement was formed in Belgrade in 1961 at the initiative of Yugoslav President Josip Broz Tito, India’s Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru, Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Nasser, Ghana’s President Kwame Nkrumah and Indonesian President Sukarno. The first Conference of Heads of State or Governments of Non-Aligned Countries was held in what was then the Yugoslav federal parliament and is now the Serbian parliament.