Under the Chairmanship of Sergey Mironov, the leader of the Senate of the Russian Federation, the Congress adopted a Declaration which called upon each CIS member state to develop its own national road safety strategy and action plan.

The Inter-parliamentary Assembly was addressed by General Viktor Kiryanov, Head of Road Safety of the Ministry on Internal Affairs, who informed the Congress that the Russian Federation was offering to host a UN Ministerial Conference on global road safety in 2009 and encouraged CIS member states to support this proposal when it is debated by the UN General Assembly early in 2008.

Held in the historic Tavricheskiy Palace, original seat of the Russian Duma established in 1906, the Congress was also addressed by Max Mosley, President of the FIA, and David Ward, Director General of the FIA Foundation. Mosley urged delegates to follow the example of France where strong leadership from former President Jacques Chirac had achieved over a 40 per cent reduction in road traffic fatalities.

“The same success can be achieved in the CIS”, said Mosley. For the FIA Foundation, David Ward outlined the recommendations of Lord Robertson’s Commission for Global Road Safety and congratulated the Russian Federation for its “vital support in offering to host the proposed UN Ministerial”.

The Make Roads Safe campaign was strongly featured in a road safety exhibition in the Tavricheskiy Palace at which many delegates signed the global petition to the UN Secretary General. Organised by Tatiana Shchipkova, Director of the Safety World International Centre in Moscow, the Make Roads Safe campaign in Russia has been strongly supported by General Kiryanov who is also the representative of the Russian Federation in the Commission for Global Road Safety.