Minister of Civil Defense, Emergency Situations and Disaster Relief Vladimir Puchkov met with Margareta Wahlström, Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General for Disaster Risk Reduction, at the 17th St Petersburg International Economic Forum. The officials discusses emergency prevention and relief.
A protocol of cooperation was signed according to which the Russian Civil Defense Ministry and the United Nations Disaster Risk Reduction Agency will improve disaster data collection, emergencies monitoring and prevention as well as early warning systems and disaster relief systems at the national, regional and global levels, including recommendations on implementing a Russian initiative on setting up an international network of crisis centres. Cooperation is also planned in training specialists in emergency prevention and risk management with the help of the higher education institutions of the Russian Emergencies Ministry.
