Russian Embassy in Sri Lanka

#InMemoryOfDiplomats

▪️ The leadership of the Russian Foreign Ministry and its Department of the North Atlantic are deeply saddened to report the sudden passing of Alexander DARCHIEV (1960-2026), Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Russian Federation to the United States of America and Permanent Observer of the Russian Federation to the Organization of American States in Washington, D.C. He passed away on November 11, 2026, at the age of 66.

We have lost a man of wisdom and depth, an outstanding diplomat, historian and scholar of American affairs who devoted his entire life and career to the service of his country.

Ambassador Darchiev had a keen and perceptive mind. Those who worked with him knew him for his exceptional professionalism and talent, his deep commitment to his country’s interests, his unwavering principles and his ability to work shoulder to shoulder with his colleagues.

Alexander Darchiev had an exceptional knowledge and understanding of the countries of North America, where he worked tirelessly throughout his diplomatic career. Moscow consistently sought his views on developments across the continent. His sound judgement and carefully considered assessments earned him a reputation as one of Russia’s foremost experts on American affairs.

His natural refinement, subtle sense of humour and personal charm went hand in hand with a quiet determination. These qualities enabled him, even at the most delicate moments in Russia’s relations with the United States and Canada, to carry out some of the most demanding tasks his country entrusted to him.

Ambassador Darchiev held a range of posts at the Ministry’s headquarters and abroad. He spent much of his career in senior positions at the Russian embassies in Washington and Ottawa.

He joined the diplomatic service in 1992 after working at the Institute for US and Canadian Studies of the USSR Academy of Sciences, where he defended his dissertation and earned the degree of Candidate of Historical Sciences.

From 2005 to 2010, he served as Minister-Counsellor at the Russian Embassy in the United States. He headed the Foreign Ministry’s North America Department from 2010 to 2014 and served as Russia’s Ambassador to Canada from 2014 to 2020. He again headed the North America Department from 2021 to 2024 and then led the North Atlantic Department from 2024 to 2025.

From March 2025, he served as Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Russian Federation to the United States of America and concurrently as Russia’s Permanent Observer to the Organization of American States in Washington, D.C.

His many state and ministerial honours included the Order of Friendship and the Order of Honour, certificates of honour from the President of the Russian Federation and the Russian Foreign Ministry, the Medal for Strengthening Military Cooperation and the Foreign Ministry’s Badge of Distinction.

🕯 We mourn the untimely loss of our mentor and friend. Our heartfelt condolences go out to his family and loved ones. We will always remember Alexander Darchiev with warmth and affection. His professionalism and vibrant personality will remain with us forever.

EEC coordinates digitalisation of procedures for certifying the origin of exported goods

At its meeting on November 10, the Board of the Eurasian Economic Commission approved methodological recommendations to help Eurasian Economic Union countries synchronise the transition to electronic procedures for obtaining certificates of origin, from an applicant’s initial request to an authorised organisation through to verification of the issued document.

EEC Minister in charge of Trade Andrey Slepnev said:

“The methodological recommendations establish unified approaches to the creation of electronic databases of issued certificates by organisations responsible for certifying the origin of goods in EAEU countries, and to the subsequent transition to fully electronic issuance. These organisations are the Chambers of Commerce and Industry of Armenia, Belarus, Kyrgyzstan and Russia, and Kazakhstan’s Atameken National Chamber of Entrepreneurs. Unifying national procedures is an important step towards deeper Eurasian integration and fulfilling international obligations under preferential agreements with third countries.»

The accepted document will provide a basis for developing new digital solutions and refining existing ones in the Member States to speed up the preparation of documentation for the export of goods beyond the EAEU customs territory and make the process more convenient for applicants for preferential and non-preferential certificates of origin.

The adoption of the methodological recommendations is provided for in the road map for implementing the Declaration on Further Development of Economic Processes within the Eurasian Economic Union until 2030 and for the Period until 2045, “The Eurasian Economic Path”, approved by EEC Council Disposition No. 39 dated December 21, 2025, and aims to implement the agreements set out in the Agreement on a Harmonised System for the Determination of the Origin of Goods Exported from the EAEU Customs Territory, signed on December 4, 2023.

#EAEU

📄 Declaration of the Collective Security Council of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (Moscow, November 11, 2026)

✍️ We, the members of the Collective Security Council of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (#CSTO), reaffirm our unconditional commitment to the objectives set out in the Collective Security Treaty and the CSTO Charter – to create favourable and stable conditions for the comprehensive development of the member states and to safeguard their security, sovereignty and territorial integrity.

We regard closer cooperation within the CSTO as one of our foreign policy priorities. We intend to take joint steps to further strengthen the collective security system.

We emphasise that the CSTO gives priority to political and diplomatic means of resolving and settling conflicts. Its guiding principles include mutual respect and equality, non-interference in the internal affairs of states and due regard for their legitimate interests.

We note that the international situation is undergoing fundamental change. A just #MultipolarWorld order continues to take shape. As new centres of influence grow stronger, competition is intensifying and new challenges to international security and global stability are emerging.

☝️ Amid continuing turbulence in world politics and international relations, stable and predictable forms of cooperation between states are particularly valuable. With its time-tested mechanisms, forces and capabilities, the CSTO is a cornerstone of a stable architecture of equal and indivisible security in Eurasia. Building such an architecture serves the fundamental interests of the Member States.

We reaffirm our intention to continue working closely together to create conditions in which every state on the continent can develop free from the threat of external interference. In doing so, we are guided by the principle that states and groups of states must not pursue their own security at the expense of others.

🌐 To this end, the CSTO Member States will take part in drafting the Eurasian Charter of Diversity and Multipolarity in the 21st Century.

We intend to continue working closely together to enhance the authority of the United Nations and strengthen its role as the principal instrument for maintaining international security. We will also work to advance a just #MultipolarWorld order founded on the UN Charter and the rule of international law, and to promote recognition of the many paths that states take towards progress as an asset to human civilisation.

We express concern at the growing threats and strategic risks arising as individual states and countries belonging to other military alliances and coalitions move their military and strategic infrastructure closer to the borders of CSTO member states.

❗️ We emphasise that the deployment of weapons systems that threaten collective security along the perimeter of the CSTO’s area of responsibility is unacceptable.

We are ready to expand cooperation between the CSTO and other international organisations, particularly the Commonwealth of Independent States and the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation, with which we share the task of ensuring stability and security across Eurasia. We welcome the establishment of permanent channels for cooperation between the CSTO and the African Union to strengthen security and address new challenges and threats.

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