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The President congratulated Mr Kropachev on his re-appointment to the post of rector and wished him success in his work. Mr Putin also passed on his congratulations to all of the university’s students on the occasion of St Tatyana’s Day, celebrated by Russian students as their holiday.

Mr Kropachev briefed the President on the state of work at the university’s new campus.

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President of Russia Vladimir Putin: Mr Kropachev, I want to congratulate you and the students of my own alma mater on the Students Day; I also want to congratulate you on your re-appointment. In recent years, while you were rector, the university has transformed noticeably. I want to wish you success and all the very best.

Rector of St Petersburg State University Nikolai Kropachev: Mr President, thank you for your trust. This is an enormous responsibility; thank you for entrusting me with this responsibility.

Vladimir Putin: How is the new campus on the shore of the Gulf of Finland? What is happening there?

Nikolai Kropachev: I wanted to invite you there, if you have an opportunity to visit. Presidential Aide Mr Fursenko and I were there today. If you can visit in the coming months, the best time would be April or May, because we plan to begin relocate students to the new campus in February, and it will be livelier there by then. You would be able to have a look around and talk with the students.

You sometimes visit the city’s universities, and we certainly hope that you will visit St Petersburg State University as well, and meet with the students.

Vladimir Putin: I would like to see the new campus.

Nikolai Kropachev: You laid a stone.

Vladimir Putin: I found that location for the campus! I was just walking and came across it. (Laughter.)

Nikolai Kropachev: Now, everything there looks different than a few years ago.

Vladimir Putin: Everything was in ruins.

NIKOLAI KROPACHEV; Yes. One of the most important points is that we were able to preserve the dilapidated buildings as well. The first four buildings we are about to commission will allow us to teach there.

We hope the students will be happy. The teaching staff have already visited it, and we even held a meeting of the university’s academic council at the end of last year, in December. Overall, everyone liked it.

Of course, we hope this platform will be used by everyone: the chemists, physicists and mathematicians; in recent years, the university has been creating a common space. In any case, we will certainly hold the scientific conferences (not just in management) at this platform.

Vladimir Putin: The project was very beautiful.

Nikolai Kropachev: We hope you will like it.

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