MOSCOW, July 4. /TASS/. Russian President Vladimir Putin has invited young people from Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) countries to take part in the World Festival of Youth, which is slated for March 2024 in Russian Black Sea resort city Sochi.

"Dear friends, I would like to point out that Sochi will host the World Festival of Youth on March 1-7, 2024. It will be the largest international youth event that will bring together active, involved young people from all over the world," the Russian head of state said, addressing the virtual SCO summit being hosted by current SCO chair India. He added that over 20,000 people from more than 180 countries were expected to participate in the festival.

According to Putin, "the festival will open up great opportunities for the establishment of direct ties between young people, informal and friendly discussions free of ideological and political barriers, as well as of racial and religious prejudices, and communication uniting the younger generation around the idea of a lasting, sustainable peace, [combined with] prosperity and creativity." "We would be glad to welcome SCO delegations at the World Festival of Youth and Friendship," the Russian president concluded.

In April, Putin signed a decree on holding of the World Festival of Youth in Russia. The festival, aimed at boosting international youth cooperation, will take place on March 1-7, 2024 and will bring together 20,000 people, including 10,000 foreign participants.

The idea of holding world festivals of youth and students was conceived after the end of WW II. The World Federation of Democratic Youth (founded in November 1945) and the International Union of Students (which existed from 1946 to the early-1990s) were the initial organizers of such events. The most recent World Festival of Youth and Students was held in Moscow and Sochi in 2017; about 25,000 young people took part in the event.