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Taking part in the videoconference were Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin, Federation Council Speaker Valentina Matviyenko, State Duma Speaker Vyacheslav Volodin, Deputy Chairman of the Security Council Dmitry Medvedev, Chief of Staff of the Presidential Executive Office Anton Vaino, Security Council Secretary Nikolai Patrushev, Interior Minister Vladimir Kolokoltsev, Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu, and Director of the Federal Security Service Alexander Bortnikov.

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President of Russia Vladimir Putin: Good afternoon, colleagues.

Today we are holding a regular meeting of the permanent members of the Russian Security Council. Let’s talk about the situation in our country and in the world.

We all know about the tragic accident in Lebanon. You know that I have issued instructions to set up an Emergencies Ministry force, reinforced with more personnel from the Ministry of Healthcare. Our colleagues have already started a relief effort in the Lebanese capital following the explosion at the port. Let’s think about what else can be done to help the people there, in Lebanon.

And of course, we will discuss the international situation in general, focusing on the post-Soviet space and bearing in mind that these countries are our closest neighbours, most of them our allies. Our interests coincide in many ways, both economically and politically. This is undoubtedly one of our foreign policy priorities.

As we agreed earlier, if there are any other matters on the current agenda from each of our colleagues here, we will discuss those, as we usually do, in a routine manner.

Let’s get to work.

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