Representatives of Intersputnik Member Countries and Signatories took part in the event arranged in a hybrid format. Mr. Samaddin Asadov, Chairman of the Space Agency of the Republic of Azerbaijan (Azercosmos) and Representative of the Republic of Azerbaijan to the Board, opened the joint session. From Baku, the session was also attended by Mr. Vugar Bayramov, Chairperson of the Intersputnik Board, Counselor on International Relations of Azercosmos, Mr. Evgeny Buydinov, Chairperson of the Operations Committee, Deputy Director General for Communications Systems Development and Operation of Russian Satellite Communications Company, Ms. Ksenia Drozdova, Director General of Intersputnik and a delegation from the Intersputnik Directorate.

Welcoming addresses were delivered by Mr. Mario Maniewicz, Director of the Radiocommunication Bureau of the International Telecommunication Union, Mr. Balthasar Staehelin, Special Envoy for Foresight and Techplomacy of the International Committee of the Red Cross, and Mr. Laurent Parenté, Director General of the International Mobile Satellite Organization.

The session focused on the Directorate's ongoing work to implement the Intersputnik Development Strategy for 2022-2026, which aims to increase the Organization's global recognition and expand its geography, improve commercial efficiency and strengthen financial stability, as well as further develop the Intersputnik international satellite telecommunications system and implement joint satellite projects using the Organization's orbit and frequency resources.

Emphasis was placed on Intersputnik's youth policy and measures to assist, including financially, young professionals from Member Countries. The session resulted in decisions related to Intersputnik's support for human capacity-building activities in space communications, including the training of a new generation of professionals in the industry through international education programmes and their involvement in leading international fora – in particular the ITU World Radiocommunication Conference scheduled for late 2023.

Election of the chairpersons of the Organization's governing bodies and of the new membership of the Auditing Commission

The election of the Chairperson of the Intersputnik Operations Committee was one of the key items on the agenda of the joint session. Following the approval of the performance of the Operations Committee, chaired by Mr. Evgeny Buydinov, Deputy Director General for Communications Systems Development and Operation of Russian Satellite Communications Company, who has performed the functions of the Chairperson of the Operations Committee since 2021, by the decision of the Operations Committee, Mr. Buydinov was elected for this key position for a three-year term.

The term of office of the current Chairperson of the Board, Mr. Vugar Bayramov, Counselor on International Relations of Azercosmos, was extended for a new period, until the next joint session of the Board and the Intersputnik Operations Committee. Mr. Bayramov was elected as Chairperson to the Board in 2022 and will continue his able leadership of the Intersputnik supreme body until 2024.

A further important decision of the session was the election of Ms. Le Thi Hien from Viet Nam, Mr. Amgalan Badam from Mongolia, and Mr. František Šebek from the Czech Republic to the Intersputnik Auditing Commission for a three-year term. Mr. Šebek was re-elected as Chairperson of the Auditing Commission for another three-year term.

Further session

The Board and the Operations Committee have agreed that the next joint 52nd session of the Board and the 27th session of the Operations Committee of Intersputnik will be held in Q2 2024 in a hybrid format. In the fourth quarter of this year, the Operations Committee will adopt decisions via correspondence.