Published on: 2026-08-05
Source: Government of the Russian Federation –
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Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Chernyshenko and the head of Rosmolodezh Grigory Gurov spoke about the results of the International Friendship Clubs (IFC) for the first half of 2026.
“The World Festival of Youth, which took place in 2024 by the order of our President Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin, has formed an entire community of active and caring young people who are ready to take responsibility for the future. Among them are young men and women from all over Russia and from 171 countries. The legacy of the festival is preserved by International Friendship Clubs. In just the first six months of this year, about 850 events promoting international youth cooperation took place in them. More than 12,500 people participated — 6,000 from Russia and 6,500 from foreign countries. This helps to acquaint foreigners and residents of different regions with our culture and national characteristics, strengthening friendship between Russia and other countries,” noted Dmitry Chernyshenko.
The head of Rosmolodezh, Grigory Gurov, reminded that the International Youth Festival will take place in Yekaterinburg this September.
“The International Youth Festival is a platform that will unite leaders from various fields – from science and creativity to entrepreneurship and IT. Participants of the International Friendship Clubs have developed formats for the ‘Cultural Patronage’ program, which will be presented at the festival in Yekaterinburg: a meeting of foreign participants with the traditional Russian karavai, master classes in folk crafts, as well as playing musical instruments. Through personal experience, our guests from abroad will be able to immerse themselves in the historical context of Russia, get acquainted with its culture and traditions,” he emphasized.
A key focus of the International Friendship Clubs is conducting joint activities with partner countries. For instance, in February, the Yaroslavl Region club held a videoconference with a Cuban representative about joint initiatives of the two countries for 2026. In May, members of the IFC in Saint Petersburg, including a representative from Venezuela, laid flowers at the Piskaryovskoye Memorial Cemetery ahead of Victory Day. And in June, the Moscow club held an interactive “Russia Day” event, which included participation from three new media representatives from China.
Clubs are also developing their own formats for ongoing work with participants. For example, in the Tyumen region, an annual educational program “School of Protocol and Etiquette of BRICS+ Member Countries” was launched, and in the Yaroslavl region, a community of translators for linguistics students was created.
Recall that the World Festival of Youth took place from March 1 to 7, 2024 at “Sirius” in accordance with the decree of Russian President Vladimir Putin with the aim of developing international youth cooperation. WFY-2024 was attended by 20 thousand young leaders from 190 countries around the world. In accordance with the President of Russia’s instructions to preserve and develop the heritage of the World Festival of Youth, festival events are held annually within the country. In 2025, the World Festival of Youth rally was held in Nizhny Novgorod. The event brought together 2 thousand young people from 120 countries worldwide. In 2026, the International Youth Festival will be held for 10 thousand participants. The next World Festival of Youth with 20 thousand participants will be held in 2030.
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