Press Release, 17.12.2026

Photo by the Yabloko Press Service

On 17 January, Alexei Georgievich Arbatov, member of the Federal Political Committee of the Yabloko Party, Head of the Centre for International Security at the Institute of World Economy and International Relations of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Doctor of Historical Sciences and Academician of the Russian Academy of Sciences, celebrates his 75th birthday. Yabloko Chairman Nikolai Rybakov and Chairman of the Yabloko’s Federal Political Committee Grigory Yavlinsky extend their congratulations on his jubilee.

Dear Alexei Georgievich,

On behalf of the entire party and personally, I congratulate you on your jubilee!

You are a model of Russian political thought and a representative of true Russian scholarship. You have always demonstrated that genuine love for one’s Motherland means honest analysis, principled positions and daily work for the benefit of people and countries. And also, that one can be faithful to one’s Motherland, striving to make it better, without bowing before authority.

You combine the depth of thought of an academic scholar with civic courage. You are a true Russian intellectual in the highest sense of the word. And today, in these difficult times, you continue to work towards peace, making an invaluable contribution to understanding international security.

At the same time, you are always open to communication and ready to help, support and give wise advice. Your willingness to share knowledge and experience inspires all who have had the good fortune to work with you.

I wish you robust health, inexhaustible energy, vigour of spirit and new achievements. May your wisdom and experience continue to serve Russia and all of us who believe in reason, dialogue and a peaceful future for a long time to come.

With respect,

Nikolai Rybakov

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Dear Alexei Georgievich,

It is with joy and respect that I congratulate you on your birthday!

We have worked together for so many years, and all this time I have been proud that you have linked your life with Yabloko, that you share with all of us and with me our choice and our fate. You are a loyal friend and a true colleague.

You are a brilliant Russian intellectual, an academician, a leading scholar, one of the world’s foremost experts in the field of nuclear weapons, a specialist of the highest level, and therefore you, like very few politicians and military specialists in the world, understand how acute and painful a moment the entire world is experiencing right now.

I follow your statements with great attention and interest, which ought to sober up all those who do not understand the potential danger to all of humanity.

Your professional assessments, rational approach to solving international security problems and thorough knowledge of weapons systems are more relevant today than ever.

And however mad the world may seem today, your voice is necessary to make the possibility of keeping it on the dangerous edge a reality!

I think your father [Georgy Arbatov (1923–2010), Soviet and Russian expert on international relations, founder of the Institute for the USA and Canada Studies, and Academician of the USSR Academy of Sciences] would be proud of you now, as he was proud throughout his life.

Take care of yourself, dear Alexei Georgievich! May there be peace, love and tranquillity in your family, despite the dramatic external circumstances.

Yours,

Grigory Yavlinsky