The delegation was headed by Chairman of the Synodal Department of the Russian Orthodox Church for Relations between Church and Society Archpriest Vsevolod Chaplin
A meeting with the delegation of the Russian Orthodox Church headed by Chairman of the Synodal Department of the Russian Orthodox Church for Relations between Church and Society Archpriest Vsevolod Chaplin was held on the initiative of the Pridnestrovian side at the Foreign Ministry today. Taking part from the Pridnestrovian side was Deputy Prime Minister of the PMR for International Cooperation, Foreign Minister Nina Shtanski, Minister of Social Protection and Labour of the PMR Oksana Bulanova, Minister of Education of the PMR Tatyana Tsivinskaya, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of the PMR Vitaly Ignatiev, as well as representatives of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the PMR.
Welcoming the guests, Nina Shtanski stressed that Pridnestrovie pays special attention to the activities of the Russian Orthodox Church, and therefore the visits of high representatives of the Russian Orthodox Church to the republic always become bright events. “Until now we keep fond memories of the visit of His Holiness Patriarch Kirill to Pridnestrovie, and you, I'm sure, remember with what joy people accepted this event which is really significant for our Orthodox land. Therefore, it is very symbolic for us that you make your visit to the republic during the celebration of its 25th anniversary”, - she said.
During the meeting, the Minister gave a high appraisal of the level of cooperation which was formed in Pridnestrovie between church, state and society. According to the diplomat, traditional values of the Pridnestrovian people serve as the basis for such consolidation of efforts.
“These values stem from our Orthodox holy places, traditions and culture that we not only maintain but also strengthen. Over the past few years many temples have been restored in Pridnestrovie with active participation of the republic's leadership, many are in the process of restoration, monasteries are improved, and all that gets the most positive response from the public,”- she said.
Vsevolod Chaplin, in his turn, expressed his congratulations to the Pridnestrovian side on the occasion of the holiday date and said that Pridnestrovie is now in extremely difficult conditions. “The republic lives in a very complex environment, it is undergoing many challenges that connected with the general instability in the world and, in particular, in Europe. There are attempts to alter not only the political space, but the space of values, change the spiritual code and ideological orientation as a whole. We often talk about the economy, the economic component, the international processes and national life, at the same time we see how in the history the most serious confrontations are built around the values, around what vector of development one or other people wants elect for itself,” - he said.
During the meeting the sides discussed a wide range of issues related to the prospects of joining efforts of the church and the state to address a number of actual problems in the social sphere, particularly in protecting the rights of socially vulnerable segments of the population.
“In our country there are many difficulties, and it is important to overcome them without “skews” both towards the bureaucracy, and towards departure from regulatory control over various processes. We do not hide that we have some concerns about the fact that the socio-economic situation in our country does not give us the fullness of the opportunities that are necessary in order to provide timely assistance to those in need - orphans, the disabled. We do not hide the fact that we have problems with unemployment and, as a result, child neglect. We are trying to solve these problems and accept help of those who are willing to provide it, solely in compliance with mutual interests,” - said Nina Shtanski. The minister noted that, unfortunately, the issues of social protection in the world are often the subject of speculation. “The subject of protection of the rights of the child, for example, has acquired a very unpleasant “stories” and attempts to spread the values alien to Orthodox people, and as a result, the true rights of the child which the state must protect recede into the background,” - she said.
In this context, the head of the Pridnestrovian diplomacy expressed the view that Pridnestrovie has positive experience in solving similar problems in the social sphere. “When the child is taken out of the family in many countries, many children in Pridnestrovie who may have lost this hope find the family,” - emphasized Nina Shtanski. Following the exchange of views on the matter, Minister of Labour and Social Protection of the PMR Oksana Bulanova provided information on priority areas of work of the ministry, achievements and successful innovations that they have managed to introduce in the system of guardianship and trusteeship in Pridnestrovie given the positive world experience.
Representatives of the Russian Orthodox Church expressed readiness to render multifaceted assistance to subject matter agencies of the republic, including methodological to resolve the most pressing social problems. “We need to work together, especially in the social sphere, education, care of the young, those who are particularly in need of help – they are the elderly, the disabled, orphans. I know that this area is actively supported in Pridnestrovie as one of the subject of dialogue between the state and the church. And the good spirit of cooperation between church and state which is being formed in Pridnestrovie is very encouraging,”- said Vsevolod Chaplin.
Speaking to the media following the meeting Nina Shtanski gave high appraisal of the results of dialogue with the delegation of the Russian Orthodox Church. “The meeting has opened new ways of cooperation with the Russian Orthodox Church, we have found support and understanding from the Russian Orthodox Church of the initiatives that we are implementing now, and which are primarily aimed at the good, the moral education of the child in our country and strengthening the institution of the family,” - said the diplomat. According to her, Vsevolod Chaplin also highly appreciated the initiative of Pridnestrovie in the field of education, in particular, the introduction of a subject “The Fundamentals of Orthodox Culture and secular ethics” in the compulsory training program for students.
The sides agreed to continue direct interaction across the entire spectrum of topical issues of the social sphere.
