Heads of foreign Russian-language media outlets gather for conference in St. Petersburg

ST. PETERSBURG, March 21. /TASS/. The heads of foreign Russian-language media outlets from 22 countries gathered in St. Petersburg on Thursday to take part in a conference of the World Association of the Russian Press (WARP), Association Executive Director Alexander Klein told TASS on Thursday. "As many as 22 countries are represented at the conference, including the United States, France, Germany, Italy, Portugal, the United Arab Emirates, Turkey, Tajikistan, Latvia, Estonia, Ukraine, Cyprus, the Netherlands, Israel and others. These are the participants in the World Association of the Russian Press - the heads of the Russian-language media outlets and publishing houses," the executive director said. WARP President Vitaly Ignatenko said in a talk with journalists that the popularization of the Russian cultural heritage, which, as he believes, requires serious information support abroad, has become one of the major topics for discussion. "Today, the Russian press, television, radio and information websites are present in 83 countries. This is, of course, a very considerable spread of not only Russian information but also of the Russian culture and the preservation of the Russian language. This is a very serious task and it is necessary ‘to keep this flame all the time," Ignatenko said. A separate part of the discussions was devoted to the preparations for the 21st World Congress of the Russian Press that will be held in Turkey in the autumn of 2019. The participants noted the importance of the fact that the forum would take place precisely in the year declared as the Cross Year of Culture and Tourism of Russia and Turkey. A decision on founding the WARP was made at the 1st World Congress of the Russian Press that was held in June 1999 in Moscow and Sochi. The news agency TASS was the initiator of creating the World Association of the Russian Press. The Association’s congresses have become a reputable venue for meetings and the exchange of information among journalists, publishers and the heads of Russian-language media outlets from many countries. The WARP is the sole world association of the Russian-language media. An annual World Congress of the Russian Press open for all the Russian-language media outlets of any formats, including those that are not members of the association, is the WARP’s highest forum. World congresses of the Russian press are held alternately in one of the countries represented in the WARP. Read more