I believe that the fight against corruption and organised crime is the main task of modern journalism.

Corruption, in particular, brings millions of people to poverty and wars, breaks down societies and makes it impossible for them to develop properly.

In our era, transnational corruption has become a phenomenon with no borders, that is why journalists trying to oppose it should not be separated by borders, but - on the contrary - should be united to achieve a specific result.

It is important that associations of journalists are better able to protect their members from arbitrary acts or threats of organised crime, rather than single editorial offices. And this is of crucial significance for such countries as Russia, where the murder of journalists who investigate different cases has become a very alarming habit.

It seems to me that the cooperation emerged between Novaya Gazeta and FLARE can produce real results to help our common aim and give hope to those journalists who live in different countries still feeling alone in their struggle.

And the prize that in the upcoming year will be jointly awarded by newspaper Novaya Gazeta and FLARE for the best investigative reports about fight against organised crime and corruption is a very challenging and important step in our joint struggle.