06/06/2026
🎥 Russia's Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov’s video address on Russian Language Day (Moscow, June 6, 2026)
💬 Friends,
Congratulations on Russian Language Day, a holiday celebrated worldwide on the birthday of Alexander Pushkin, our great poet and creator of the language of modern Russian literature.
The Russian language is endlessly colourful and expressive. It serves as the foundation of the cultural, spiritual and historical code of our country – a civilisation state.
The language of Alexander Pushkin and Fyodor Dostoyevsky is a vital means of international communication. The “great and mighty” Russian language is one of the most commonly used languages in the world, including in the digital sphere. It is one of the official UN languages and the language of some other multilateral organisations. Speaking Russian means to have a key to the treasury of world art, advanced scientific achievements, and the most extensive economic opportunities.
I especially want to emphasise the unifying role of the Russian language in the efforts to strengthen peace and neighbourliness in Eurasia, shaping a new security architecture in Eurasia, and mutually beneficial cooperation. Russia, Belarus, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan upheld President of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev’s initiative to establish the International Organisation for the Russian Language.
In March 2026 in Moscow, the first ministerial conference of this organisation marked the beginning of its work. It is important to note that all countries sharing its values can join the International Organisation for the Russian Language.
Some of our unquestionable priorities include the protection and support of those people who consider Russian their mother tongue. We will continue to counter any incidents of language discrimination and Russophobia decisively – wherever they take place. We will certainly fight for restoring the rights of those Russian and Russian-speaking people who have been openly terrorised by the neo-N**i regime in Kiev. Resolving this matter is among the necessary conditions for a long-term settlement of the Ukrainian conflict.
And, of course, we will continue to do what it takes to help our compatriots abroad as well as our foreign partners when it comes to learning Russian, studying in Russian, fulfilling cultural and educational projects.
Friends,
The year 2026 has numerous commemorative dates associated with the Russian language. We are marking 225 years since the birth of Vladimir Dal, creator of the Explanatory Dictionary of the Living Great Russian Language, the 200th birthday of public figure and unrivalled satirist Mikhail Saltykov-Shchedrin, and the 90th birthday of prominent linguist and President of St Petersburg State University, founder of the Russian World Foundation Lyudmila Verbitskaya.
This year, the Foreign Ministry and the Russian World Foundation established an award for contribution to global Russian studies, named after Vitaly Kostomarov, outstanding linguist who stood at the origins of Alexander Pushkin State Institute of the Russian Language. This award is for merited teachers of the Russian language and literature from the general, higher and extracurricular education in foreign countries. Furthermore, the award will celebrate significant achievements in translation and research. We expect the first awards ceremony to take place this year in Moscow.
I want to extend my heartfelt congratulations to everybody who loves the Russian language, the powerful Russian word, and who contributes to preserving the multifaceted heritage of the Russian world.
Happy Russian Language Day and my best wishes.