On December 8, Vitebsk /Olga Bogacheva - BELTA/. The number of higher education institutions participating in the International Student Slavic Forum will increase. This was announced today at a press conference dedicated to the opening of the first forum by Vladimir Terentyev, Deputy Chairman of the Vitebsk Regional Executive Committee, as reported by a BELTA correspondent. "Currently, five higher education institutions from the Vitebsk region and three from the Smolensk region are participating in the forum. Negotiations have been held with higher education institutions from St. Petersburg and Veliky Novgorod regarding their participation. Ukrainian higher education institutions have also shown interest. Thus, in May, we expect to see representatives from Oles Honchar Dnipro National University among the forum participants," said Vladimir Terentyev. He emphasized that any higher education institution wishing to join the forum can do so at any time, considering the continuous nature of its events, as it is created to foster student communication and inter-university ties. "Today we are taking the first step, but the interest in this event is already enormous," noted the Deputy Chairman of the Vitebsk Regional Executive Committee. The I International Student Slavic Forum is held with the aim of strengthening the unity of Slavic peoples, preserving the system of Slavic values, and enhancing cooperation in scientific, educational, cultural, and sports activities.