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Dmitry Medvedev and Donald Tsang discussed the development prospects of the bilateral relations, regional issues and the international agenda.

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President of Russia Dmitry Medvedev: Mr Chief Executive of Hong Kong, Mr Tsang,

I am very happy to be meeting with you again. It is very nice that this meeting is taking place in Moscow, rather than on the sidelines of one of the forums where we have met in recent years and discussed prospects for developing relations between Russia and Hong Kong, as well as international agenda.

Before we review issues pertaining to our relations, please allow me to express my condolences following the recent tragedy with regard to the capture of your fellow countrymen in Manila. This was a very sad event. It demonstrates that there exists a whole set of international problems that we must fight jointly, and fight hard.

I hope you had a pleasant flight to Moscow. It is my understanding you flew a Hong Kong airline which has launched regular flights to Moscow. This is a very important factor, because this means direct communication and the opportunity to discuss a variety of issues. I hope that your meetings here with the Russian business community and Russian officials will be useful. Meanwhile, you and I will continue to discuss the issues we addressed in Singapore and in Peru.

CHIEF EXECUTIVE OF THE HONG KONG SPECIAL ADMINISTRATIVE REGION OF THE PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC OF CHINA DONALD TSANG (retranslated): First of all, Mr President and your colleagues, I am very grateful that you have taken time to see me here. And like you, I would rather meet you here and discuss business here than somewhere else like Peru or Singapore. It is very nice to be here in the Kremlin. Naturally, I have been near it several times as a tourist, but this is the first time I have been inside.

Thank you for your kind words. It was shocking news; we have never had anything like this happen to us. We are taking special security measures for the international community in Hong Kong, and we are working on these issues. We hope that we will learn from these events, as will authorities in the Philippines, who will give greater attention to the problem of security for tourists in their nation. Our colleagues in this country also regret what has happened.

I had a very pleasant flight here, Mr President. I enjoyed enormously the opportunity to take the inaugural flight of Cathay Pacific over here. I recommend that all Russians journeying to Hong Kong take it.

It is very important, Mr President, that we abolished visa requirements in July of last year. Since then, we have had a 100 percent increase in visitors. I am certain that this trend will continue. It is very important for us; it is a major success. I am certain that as a result, more businesspeople and investors will come to Russia. I hope that this cooperation will be fruitful.

On this occasion, Mr President, I have brought a delegation of thirty leading businessmen from my nation. They represent key sectors including banking services, security, bonds, insurance, logistics, and other areas. They would like to establish business ties with Russia. I hope that we will open our doors to one another and be able to explain the significance, usefulness and, perhaps, uniqueness of Hong Kong to Russian businessmen here.

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