MOSCOW (Sputnik) — Fomin said at a briefing that NATO Military Liaison Mission in Moscow's Col. Antonio Sandri would attend the April 26-27 conference, adding that the official declined the offer to deliver a report.
"We sent an invitation to NATO leadership, particularly to [Chairman of the NATO Military Committee] Gen. Petr Pavel. Unfotuantely, there was no confirmation of his participation," he said.
Fomin added that nearly 80 countries have agreed to attend the Moscow Security Conference on April 26-27, including more than 20 defense ministers.
"A total of more than 700 guests are expected to attend, including about 500 representatives of foreign countries. Representatives from 78 states confirmed their participation, among them more than 20 heads of defense departments," Fomin said.
he fight against terrorism will be discussed at the sixth annual Moscow Conference on International Security scheduled for April 26-27, Russian Deputy Defense Minister Alexander Fomin said Wednesday.
"The first session will be dedicated to the current global security challenges, primarily the international terrorism," Fomin said at a briefing devoted to the upcoming conference.
He added that during the plenary session participants would discuss the current situations in regions such as the Middle East, Northern Africa and Afghanistan, which are recognized as the "forefront" for countering terrorism. Apart from that, the role of military forces involved in international relations and various approaches to conflict settlement will be discussed, Fomin indicated.
"During the second session 'European Security: prospects and trends,' we will focus on the issues of transformation of Euro-Atlantic security institutions, NATO-Russia interaction, increase of openness and strengthening the confidence-building measures in the military sphere," the deputy defense minister stated.
The third plenary session "Asia-Pacific: balance of interests or a military standoff?" will be dedicated to one of the most actively developing regions, Fomin said. The discussion will be centered around such issues as the safety of maritime routes, military-to-military dialogue as a factor of stability in the region, military alliances and the balance of military force, as well as multilateral formats for security interaction, he continued.
The fourth session "Military-to-military engagements: regional aspects" will be devoted to the most common issues faced during interactions between the military authorities, such as the form and modalities of military cooperation, problems of regional security and their possible solutions, as well as the significance of military-to-military engagements in preventing major incidents, Fomin said. He also noted the relevance of the section discussions.
"The discussion of the fight against terrorism and radicalism in the Middle East, security of the information space, ballistic missile defense and security in Central Asia will be held," Fomin explained.
The deputy minister added that the discussions would be attended by the representatives of foreign military agencies, delegates from their respective countries’ defense ministries, as well as experts from key research institutes that specialize in international security from a broad range of European countries, the United States, the Middle East, Asia, Africa and Latin America.
"The former prominent representatives of the military and political leadership of these countries are among those experts," Fomin said.
