April 10, 2022

General Members Assembly

On April 10, DRJUG online held its annual general meeting. Our chairs Mikhail Polianskiy and Beatrice von Braunschweig guided the participants through the event.

In addition to the annual topics of a general meeting, this year's meeting focused, of course, on the current situation in Ukraine with its serious consequences. For this purpose DRJUG had already invited one week before to the member dialogue, in order to consider together the effects of the war in Ukraine on the work and the people of the association. The results of the discussion were presented at the general meeting. In addition, there was time for further suggestions, which are now planned in a new extraordinary meeting with members of the presidium and members of the association.

For the latest information, please also visit our social media channels on Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn. 

March 3, 2022

Press release March 3, 2022 + Project stop

The German-Russian Youth Initiative DRJUG e.V., as a representative of the youth civil societies in Germany and Russia, strongly condemns the war by the Russian government against Ukraine. Therefore, we demand the immediate withdrawal of foreign forces from Ukraine and the laying down of all weapons by all parties. We are deeply concerned about the Ukrainian population, especially our members, partners, former participants of our forums, friends and families in the affected areas. 

"These days we are very concerned about the situation in Ukraine and the people on the ground. At the same time, we are also thinking about Russian people protesting against the war and about the ties with the Russian civil society, which we must not lose," emphasizes Beatrice von Braunschweig, German co-chair of DRJUG e.V.

We do not see how a youth exchange can take place in the current situation. For this reason, we are stopping our projects for the time being.

Find more about our current activities in our press release in German, Russian and English language.

February 24, 2022

Press release on Peace in Europe

Today our thoughts are with Ukrainians and other civilians who became victims of a horrible military intervention.

Despite all differences and challenges between the nations, there is one common wish that ultimately unites us: Millions of people want peace!

We, at DRJUG, have been constantly promoting peaceful international cooperation. With growing distrust in the governments and media, NGOs must act as stabilizing forces and as effective drivers of positive change. We, therefore, appeal to the decision-makers in Russia, Ukraine and the EU to re-establish the dialogue and engage the entire range of multilateral actors. As representatives of the international youth civil society, we believe in the power of diplomacy and reject any act of aggression or military measures.

In the sake of the current young and future generations, we encourage all parties, governments and NGOs of the countries involved, especially those that are on the forefront of the conflict, to apply maximum efforts and measures towards the de-escalation and a peaceful resolution of the crisis. We are full of hope that our leaders will make the right decision which will allow us to live in peace and safety together.

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Find here our press release in Russian, German and English language.

December 15, 2022

II. Youth Normandy Talks held in Leipzig and online

The II. Youth Normandy Talks took place in Leipzig and online from December 6 to 9, 2021. We were happy to welcome participants at least partly in Leipzig and to work with them on site.

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About 22 young people from Germany, Russia, Ukraine and France participated in the hybrid II. Youth Normandy Talks.  Our participants had the opportunity to meet with various experts from each country and discuss multilateral issues. Among other things, our participants talked with experts panel discussions offered on international law and the conflict in Eastern Ukraine.

In addition, participants were divided into small groups across countries to work on a multi-day project. This year, the young people made short films in which they addressed their own views on international law, peace and security.

This year, DRJUG co-organized the event with the Youth Association for a Greater Europe, National Diplomacy, the Ukrainian Union of Jewish Students, and the Center for German Humanities Studies.

Finally, we would like to express our gratitude to our partners: The German Foreign Office, The German-French Youth Office, Schneider Group, Claas and Club International.

December 3, 2021

DRJUG memorandum on mutual recognition of COVID-19 tests and vaccine certificate

We all at DRJUG value the freedom of movement as one of the fundamental rights which also allows us to bring bright young people from our countries together. You know that we successfully advocated the visa-free campaign and it gave us confidence that the voice of youth is not only heard by our political leaders but can also make a real difference.

Today we have released a new initiative related to the newest challenge. Many young people who continue to travel between Germany and Russia are currently facing significant bureaucratic obstacles due to the disagreement on a mutual recognition of the vaccine certificates and COVID-tests.

We are convinced that a major part of the issue is caused by a lack of political will. Therefore we decided to openly address our concerns and published our new COVID Memorandum to urge our governments to harmonize the formal procedures.

Please check the full text here.