Elena Soboleva

HSE University-St Petersburg International Partners' Week continued with the Academic Day. Experts from different countries and researchers from HSE University held more than ten strategic sessions and discussed the ethics of AI use, the development of diplomacy in the age of multipolarity and new formats of university cooperation.

Within the framework of the 3rd Congress of International Relations Scholars (KIMO) in St. Petersburg, Svetlana Krivokhizh and Elena Soboleva served as organizers and speakers of the roundtable titled “China in the Global Communication Space: Discourses, Institutions, and Strategies of Influence.” The session brought together leading Russian experts on China’s contemporary communication policies from the Institute of China and Modern Asia of the Russian Academy of Sciences (ICMA RAS), MGIMO University of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the European University at St. Petersburg, Kazan Federal University, and Moscow State Linguistic University, sparking lively discussion among congress participants.

On April 14, 2026, as part of the HSE University April International Scientific Conference in Moscow, a roundtable titled “China in Global Governance: From Narratives to Institutions” was held, organized by the Centre for Comprehensive European and International Studies (CCEIS). The discussion brought together leading Russian experts on contemporary China from the Institute of China and Modern Asia of the Russian Academy of Sciences (ICMA RAS), the European University at St. Petersburg, RUDN University, and HSE University. The session was moderated by Vasily Kashin, Director of CCEIS.

We continue to talk about our tracks, and today we will discuss the field of international relations. The most common questions we receive from students considering this track are: ‘Theory is useful, of course, but where can I find lively discussions and a community? What real-world skills can I develop?’ This track addresses these questions through a comprehensive approach. Here, you can delve into political theories and concepts, write a term paper that will form the basis for publication, and discuss current world events in a discussion club. Fourth-year student Sofya Cherkasova shared how she managed to structure her studies in a way that was both interesting and useful for developing her professional skills.

We are glad to share the most interesting events in December at our Department.

November at the Department of International Relations and Political Science of Central Asia and East Asia was very active.

The International Partners' Week at HSE University-St Petersburg united more than 100 representatives of leading universities from 23 countries. During the large forum, specialists of the campus, invited experts and international partners took part in panel discussions on artificial intelligence, the use of 'soft power', shaping a new generation of leaders and many other topics.

A delegation from HSE University-St Petersburg headed by Evgeny Zelenev, Director of the Institute of Asian and African Studies, has visited the Tashkent State University of Oriental Studies (TSUOS). The meeting marked a new stage of cooperation development between the leading educational institutions in Russia and Uzbekistan.

The delegation of the Institute of Asian and African Studies consisting of the Director of the Institute Evgeny Zelenev, Deputy Directors Elena Soboleva and Maria Soloshcheva visited Tashkent State University of Oriental Studies - the largest centre of contemporary and classical Oriental Studies in Central Asia.

Peking University is one of the twenty best universities in the world according to two rankings—Times Higher Education and QS. It is hard to enrol there but quite possible for the graduates of HSE University-St Petersburg. Kirill Kravtsov managed to enrol there straight away after the Bachelor's programme 'Asian and African Studies'. In the record of the graduate are four internships in Chinese universities and several articles. We talked to Kirill about his studies in China and development within HSE University.

The special issue of the international interdisciplinary journal Central Asian Survey has been published. It was co-edited by Oleg Korneev, Associate Professor at the Department of Political Science and International Affairs, mentor of one of the educational tracks in the Master's programme 'Comparative Politics of Eurasia'. The issue is devoted to the relations between the European Union and Central Asian countries. It features articles by three lecturers of HSE University-St Petersburg.

Central Asian Survey, published by Taylor & Francis, is the leading international peer-reviewed, multi-disciplinary journal concerned with the history, politics, cultures, religions and economies of Central Asia and the Caucasus. Oleg Korneev, Associate Professor at the Department of Political Science and International Affairs, HSE University-St Petersburg, co-edited the special issue ‘EU–Central Asian Interactions: Perceptions, Interests and Practices’ together with his colleagues Rick Fawn (University of St Andrews) and Karolina Kluczewska (University of Ghent).

HSE professors took part in an international conference in Tashkent and held a number of guest lectures.

14-15^th of May 2015 the international conference “Education and Global Cities: Perspectives of BRICS” took place in St. Petersburg bringing together leading foreign and Russian experts in the field of education. In the framework of this conference the Center of Asian and African Studies and the Department of Asian and African Studies co-organized the round table “Education Trends in the Context of Ethnic and Cultural Diversity”, which focused on the challenges of education in multiethnic states with a special emphasis on the BRICS countries.