On the afternoon of Tuesday 6th February 2024, the Ambassador of the Russian Federation H.E. Mr. Artem Kozhin met with the Speaker of the National Assembly Hon. Roger Mancienne. Heading the Russian delegation alongside the Ambassador was the Head of Department of the Ministry of Sport Mr. Ivan Kostiuhin, accompanied by Head of the All-Russian Association of Beach Sports Mr. Ilya Volodarskiy, Deputy Ambassador of the Russian Federation Mr. Alexander Odoevsky, and investors Mr. Oleg Borunov and Mr. Valentin Lavrenyuk. The Hon. Speaker was accompanied by the Deputy Speaker Hon. Gervais Henrie, the Clerk of the National Assembly Mrs. Tania Isaac, and the Deputy Clerk Ms. Alexandria Faure.
The Hon. Speaker welcomed the delegation and invited H.E. Kozhin to take the floor in expanding on the purpose of the delegation’s visit to Seychelles. The 2025 FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup, notably the first ever FIFA Beach Soccer tournament held in Africa, is one of high acclaim and one which follows a strict set of regulations prescribed by FIFA. The Ambassador stated that the Russian Embassy was glad to be providing support and expertise to Seychelles in the preparation and creation of a firm roadmap to ensure the success and realisation of the tournament in full compliance of the rules. Alongside meetings with various related Ministries and stakeholders, the Ambassador emphasised that maintaining parliamentary links through a national event such as this is vital.
An honourable mention was also made to the participation of a Seychelles delegation of the National Assembly in the Russian Parliamentary Games in 2024, of which an invite was then extended for this year’s edition. The Ambassador commented that this level of continued cooperation, especially with the National Assembly, provided a sense of stability and support in the friendly bilateral relations between Russia and Seychelles, which would provide the forum for future developments and opportunities of mutual growth.
The Hon. Speaker thanked the Ambassador and the delegation for their presence once again, noting that this upcoming tournament was a much-awaited occasion with a great impact on the country both culturally and in terms of economic prospects. Hon. Mancienne concurred that this provided an opportunity for further engagement between our two parliaments and enhanced the friendship between Russia and Seychelles. The Speaker relayed his thanks for being included in such discussions and conveyed his best wishes in the intensive planning processes. The Russian delegation then presented Speaker Mancienne with a few tokens of appreciation and cultural significance before the meeting came to a close.
