First stage of Diplomatic Rally takes place

The first stage of the Diplomatic Vintage Car Rally, organized annually by GlavUpDK  – the international Russophiles’ Vintage Car Rally  – took place in Moscow on September 16. The event complemented the program of the Fourth Congress of the International Russophile Movement, where Foreign Minister of the Russian Federation Sergey Lavrov spoke at the plenary session on September 17.

On the day of the Moscow stage, vintage cars manufactured no later than 2000 and decorated with the state symbols of the Russian Federation and the International Russophile Movement lined up at the site beside the Ministry’s high-rise administrative building on Smolenskaya-Sennaya Square to the accompaniment of the drum ensemble from the Russian Foreign Ministry College. The rally was flagged off by Ivan Kostić, Secretary General of the International Russophile Movement.

From there, the crews drove along the Garden Ring and the Yauza embankment to VDNKh, where the cars were displayed for visitors to the exhibition complex. The crews also took a guided tour of the Federal Guard Service of Russia’s Special Purpose Garage Museum.

The rally provided an opportunity for people to connect and strengthen friendly ties, bringing together automotive history enthusiasts and people from different generations and countries.

The Moscow stage of the Russophiles’ Vintage Car Rally opened the 2026 Diplomatic Rally program. The second stage of the rally will take place on September 26, with the route running from the Russian Foreign Ministry building to the Zavidovo Recreation Complex, an affiliate of GlavUpDK in the Tver Region.