http://valdaiclub.com Mon, 10 Aug 2026 11:00:00 +0300 60 https://valdaiclub.com/a/highlights/africa-russia-academic-mobility-from-soviet-legacy/ Graduates of Soviet higher education institutions have shaped contemporary Africa, returning home with invaluable skills in spheres ranging from medicine and agriculture to energy and mining. Today, Russia is once more emerging as an educational and academic hub for African students, with much to offer aspiring specialists from the continent. Yet, tapping into this potential will require more than just political will on its own, writes Souleymane Anta Ndiaye, Former Minister-Counsellor and Head of the Economic Department of the Embassy of Senegal in Moscow. Analytics / Opinion Mon, 10 Aug 2026 11:00:00 +0300 https://valdaiclub.com/a/highlights/india-and-the-sco/ India’s initiatives in the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation have focused on economic issues, reflecting its desire to build economic cooperation with Central Asian states in order to improve its regional positioning and enhance multilateralism. The SCO can no doubt contribute to regional collaboration by adhering to the 4 Ms principle: members must embrace Mutual Respect, Mutual Interest, Mutual Sensitivity and Mutual Benefit in order for the group to emerge stronger and more relevant, writes Anil Trigunayat. Analytics / Opinion Fri, 07 Aug 2026 11:00:00 +0300 https://valdaiclub.com/a/highlights/threading-the-needle-the-global-south-faces-the-west/ Despite mounting tensions and fundamental disagreements on the structure of the international order, the Global South grouping of countries is not in a hurry to sever its ties with the West. Oleg Barabanov, Programme Director of the Valdai Discussion Club, describes the Global South’s uncertain position in a world defined by competition between Washington and its primary adversaries—Moscow, Tehran, and Beijing. Analytics / Opinion Thu, 06 Aug 2026 11:00:00 +0300 https://valdaiclub.com/a/highlights/kyrgyzstan-s-strategy-and-new-horizons-for-cooperation/ Central Asia is a region that finds itself playing an increasingly important logistical, economic, and strategic role in contemporary Eurasian and global affairs. In this environment, Kyrgyzstan charts its foreign policy course with an emphasis on healing long-standing rifts with neighbours and bolstering regional integration—an approach that would facilitate the country’s emergence as a fully-fledged pole in the international system. Analytics / Opinion Wed, 05 Aug 2026 11:00:00 +0300 https://valdaiclub.com/a/highlights/the-sco-and-financial-security/ Despite an array of important accomplishments under its belt, the SCO routinely becomes subject to doubts over delivering practical results. Something that may serve as a major “return on investment” for the organisation would be the establishment of a fully-fledged multilateral infrastructure for financial settlements within the SCO, writes Ivan Timofeev, Programme Director of the Valdai Discussion Club. Analytics / Opinion Tue, 04 Aug 2026 11:00:00 +0300