People are realizing that the need for security goes beyond the traditional understanding of human needs as described by Maslow's hierarchy, Samuel P. Bissiоer, the military attaché at the Cameroonian Embassy in Moscow, told Sputnik on the sidelines of the 9th International Military and Technical Forum (ARMY-2023).
He stated that while survival is essential, security is the primary challenge facing societies today. Bissiоer highlighted Russia's proposition of an alternative approach, which has brought together numerous nations at the forum.
"Before means for surviving, the first challenge of the man is the one of security. So, people are observing that the architecture is not good, and they think that maybe there could be an alternative," Bissiоer argued. "And that is why we are here. And from what we are listening to, Russia is absolutely proposing an alternative."
Bissiоer also touched on the concept of culture and its importance in achieving prosperity. According to him, true decolonization for Africans will occur when they internalize the essence of culture, leading to immense wealth and technological advancement.
Citing the example of his own country, Cameroon, which embraces 248 different cultures among its population of 27 million, the military attache explained that culture represents the collective management of diverse traditions by a community.
"So what is culture? My definition of culture is that it is the management of different gods by a community. Which means what? How this community succeeded to survive, since maybe thousands of years. When those people will look at that dictionary, how did we, our ancestors, our parents succeed to survive, you cannot imagine what will happen," he said.
Army-2023 is an international military-technical event organized by the Russian Ministry of Defense on August 14-20. It features over 28,500 exhibits and 1,500 exhibitors from Russia and abroad showcasing the latest achievements and innovations in the field of defense and security.
President Vladimir Putin delivered an address at the opening ceremony of the forum in which he welcomed the participants and guests and emphasized Moscow's openness to technological partnerships and military-technical cooperation with other countries.