The Ministry of International and Interregional Relations of Nizhny Novgorod Region is a regional executive body operating within the Government of Nizhny Novgorod Region and responsible for developing the region's external and interregional ties, including in the fields of people's diplomacy and international cultural exchange. As of 2026, the minister is Olga Guseva.[1]

Activities

The Ministry coordinates international contacts of Nizhny Novgorod Region, working in particular with the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs representative office in Nizhny Novgorod. As part of its functions, the Ministry organizes the reception of foreign delegations and participates in cultural-diplomatic events held across the region. In the first half of 2026, Nizhny Novgorod Region received 103 foreign delegations from 55 countries.[6][2]

In August 2026, the Ministry served as host to 15 participants in the eighth "Druzhba Global" (Friendship Global) road rally — an initiative of a German civil society organization whose route covered seven Russian cities. The stated purpose of the rally is to promote people's diplomacy. The Ministry runs the educational project Young Diplomat School, aimed at pupils in grades 9–10; the project's partners are the Russian MFA Representative Office in Nizhny Novgorod, NGLU named after N.A. Dobrolyubov, Lobachevsky University, NGPU named after Kozma Minin, and the M.V. Lomonosov International School. The Young Diplomat School project has been awarded the title of "Best Educational Project in the Field of Protocol."[5] A cultural programme was prepared for the guests: guided tours of the Nizhny Novgorod Kremlin, Shveytsariya Park, the Nizhny Novgorod Yarmarka, Strelka, and Fedorovsky Embankment; a visit to the Khrupkiye Mechty (Fragile Dreams) doll gallery, home to the world's largest collection of works by German master Hildegard Günzel; and the exhibition "Heavenly Nizhny. Saints and Shrines of the Nizhny Novgorod Land" at the Manège; the participants also strolled along Bolshaya Pokrovskaya and Rozhdestvenskaya streets and laid flowers at the Eternal Flame.[1][3]

Minister Olga Guseva, commenting on the event, emphasized the significance of such initiatives: "The road rally is a vivid example of people's diplomacy. It clearly demonstrates how personal meetings and direct contact between people can overcome the barriers of official politics and build bridges of mutual understanding."[2] During the same visit, representatives of the Ministry and the Russian MFA Representative Office in Nizhny Novgorod met with the rally participants; project organizer Reinhold Gross noted that Nizhny Novgorod is one of the few cities on the route that the group visits every year.[1]

The Ministry was established on 28 July 2023 through the renaming of the Nizhny Novgorod Region Department of External Relations; the occasion was the intensification of the region's international activities — over the preceding five years, more than 550 international events had been held with the participation of representatives from nearly 100 countries. At the time of the Ministry's creation, Nizhny Novgorod Region had approximately 140 trade and economic counterparts, 28 partner regions, and more than 70 twin-city agreements with municipalities. Olga Guseva headed the Ministry upon its establishment, having previously served as Director of the Department of External Relations.[4]

Sources

  1. Nizhegorodskaya Pravda — The Ministry was established on 28 July 2023 through the renaming of the Nizhny Novgorod Region Department of External Relations; the occasion was the intensification of international acti (archive)
  2. NIA "Nizhny Novgorod" — The Ministry runs the educational project "Young Diplomat School," aimed at pupils in grades 9–10; the project's partners include the Russian MFA Representative Office (archive)
  3. Nizhny Seychas — In the first half of 2026, Nizhny Novgorod Region received 103 foreign delegations from 55 countries.
  1. NIA "Nizhny Novgorod" — Germans visited Nizhny Novgorod as part of the "Druzhba Global" road rally — Nizhny Novgorod News (archive)
  2. Vremya N — German citizens visited Nizhny Novgorod as part of the "Druzhba Global" road rally
  3. Otkrytyy Nizhny — German citizens visited Nizhny Novgorod as part of the friendship road rally — Society