11 May 2006

NATO-Russia rally starts at the end of the line News 04/05/2006 - NATO NATO-Russia Rally to take place in Russia Multimedia High resolution photos Rally map Vladivostok, the end stop of the Trans-Siberian railway, was the first stop for the NATO-Russia Rally, a series of public events on NATO-Russia relations across the Russian Federation, 11-26 May. Until 1992 Vladivostok was closed to foreign visitors. But on 11 May, its Far Eastern National University hosted a major conference and debate on “NATO-Russia Council: from Vladivostok to Vancouver ”. This was the first of a series of major public events, which will be held in nine cities across the Russian Federation. The aim of the NATO-Russia Rally is to give the Russian public a chance to hear more about, and to debate, cooperation between the Alliance and Russia in the framework of the NATO-Russian Council. Reaching out Over 400 students took part in the lively exchange of views, as well as 100 sailors from the Russian Pacific Fleet, which has its headquarters in Vladivostok. In addition, a small group of anti-NATO demonstrators outside the conference venue also made their voices heard. Viktor Gorchakov, Vice Governor of the Primorskiy Kray region, of which Vladivostok is the capital, was unfazed by the protest. “People in Vladivostok have different opinions and the right to express them. This is a democracy here,” he said . Representing the Alliance were NATO Assistant Secretary General for Public Diplomacy, Jean Fournet, the Canadian Ambassador to Russia, Christopher Westdal, and the US Consulate General in Vladivostok, John Mark Pommersheim. Russian participants included local officials, led by Mr. Gorchakov, as well as representatives of the Russian Foreign Ministry. The main organizer of the event was the Far Eastern National University in Vladivostok Vladivostok is the capital of the Russian Far East and the last stop on the famous Trans-Siberian railroad, 9,288 km away from Moscow. Next Rally stop is Novosibirsk, 12 May.