Andrei Savinykh Andrei Savinykh Chairman of the Standing Commission on International Affairs of the House of Representatives We should respond to all threats in an appropriate and timely manner, Chairman of the Standing Committee on International Affairs of the House of Representatives Andrei Savinykh said at the international conference “Responding to external challenges and threats: Parliamentary dimension of the Union State [of Belarus and Russia], BelTA has learned. “First of all, I would like to stress that not only the military and politicians, but all citizens are responsible for defending their Motherland. Politicians, of course, can play an important role in this field. Contemporary warfare differs fundamentally from traditional wars. It is waged not by means of force and with the use of military equipment, but with the help of cognitive technologies, ideology, and economic pressure. All this comes within the scope of politicians: it is about negotiations, where parties should defend their positions and search for solutions. In my opinion, the best way to respond to such threats is deciding for ourselves what world we are building, what country we are developing, what union of nations and countries we want to create in order to secure the future of our nations. Ideological issues are taking center stage. The civil society of Belarus should unite around these ideals,” Andrei Savinykh said.