Ready again: final preparations for the Russia—ASEAN summit are underway in Kazan

This week, Kazan will once again be in the center of global attention — from June 17 to 19, the city will host the Russia-ASEAN summit dedicated to the 35th anniversary of the establishment of relations between the parties. Leaders of states and governments from all over Southeast Asia will gather in the republican capital, along with journalists, translators, law enforcement officers and technical staff - a total of 8.5 thousand people. Along with the high-level negotiations, various agreements on cooperation between the organization and its individual members with Russia and Tatarstan are expected to be signed. For more information, see the Izvestia article.

The choice is not accidental

The decision to hold the summit in Kazan was made personally by Vladimir Putin, and this choice is not accidental. First of all, the capital of Tatarstan hosted the BRICS summit at the highest level two years ago, and has repeatedly become a venue for global international events before that. Secondly, the relevant presidential decree was signed at the end of April, just two months before the summit. Only a few Russian cities can prepare for such a large—scale event in such a short time, and Kazan is one of them.

13 delegations representing Brunei Darussalam, Vietnam, Indonesia, Cambodia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Singapore, Thailand, the Philippines, East Timor, Russia, and the ASEAN secretariat are invited to participate. The head of the republic, Rustam Minnikhanov, has already called the summit the most important event of 2026.

— The country's leadership and Vladimir Putin personally entrusted Tatarstan with hosting this large-scale event. It is a great honor and a huge responsibility for all of us," he said, speaking at a meeting a few days before the start of the event.

Hospitality in detail

Ilsur Metshin, the Mayor of Kazan, noted that the task of the city authorities is to ensure maximum comfort and safety for everyone, as well as to create ideal working conditions.

— Hospitality is not just bread, salt and chuck-chuck. It's a million details that make up the atmosphere. This is a great job for a huge number of professionals. We are proud that the level of our specialists and the quality of our infrastructure is growing every year, with each new global event," says the mayor.

The city authorities did not disappoint: by the middle of June, truly tremendous work had been done in the capital of Tatarstan. To receive and accommodate all the guests, nine venues, three dozen hotels, more than a hundred restaurants and cafes, as well as urban infrastructure have been prepared: train stations, roads, public spaces. Everything was once again thoroughly put in order: the few roads that had fallen into disrepair after last year's summit were repaired, the territory was landscaped, including around the renovated Shopping center, and the city was decorated with 1.3 million flowers — exactly one flower for each resident of Kazan.

The Regional Operational Headquarters for the organization of the ASEAN Summit in Kazan, together with the federal center, determined the locations of the delegations and arrival schedules for the guests. On the part of the city, everything has been thought out to the smallest detail: for example, only hotels with presidential suites will be used to accommodate top officials. Before the BRICS summit last year, there were only eight such numbers, and now there are more than 20.

— Thanks to the hoteliers, a lot of people have updated the infrastructure, equipment, and redone the room stock for BRIX. But this does not negate the scrupulousness in preparing for the event. We always say that we organize any event like the first time," Ilsur Metshin, Mayor of the capital of Tatarstan, said at a meeting of the operational staff for the preparation of the summit.

Infrastructural momentum

The Russia-ASEAN Summit will add to the list of major events that Kazan will host. In addition to the already mentioned BRICS summit, the Universiade (2013), the World Football Championships (2018), water sports, working professions (WorldSkills), the Confederation Cup games, and the Russia—Islamic World economic forums are regularly held here.

Preparation for each such event gives an impetus to the development of infrastructure and attracts additional investments. For example, this year more than 1 billion rubles have been allocated from the republican budget of Kazan alone for the preparation of urban infrastructure. In addition, hosting prestigious international events makes the city more popular: if 400,000 tourists came to Kazan 20 years ago, 5 million guests visited the city last year.