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Dmitry Medvedev congratulated Barack Obama on his first birthday as President of the United States of America.

Mr Obama thanked Mr Medvedev and expressed his high regard for the positive tone in communication between the two Presidents that has prevailed in their earlier contacts. Both sides emphasised the need to maintain trust-based relations between the Presidents and their teams.

An intense teamplay ensured productive talks during the full-format Russian-American summit in Moscow in July 2009 and its positive results which generally improved the atmosphere and essence of bilateral cooperation, the Presidents noted.

The two leaders exchanged views on the progress in implementing various agreements reached at the Moscow summit. In particular, they stressed the need for the U.S.-Russia Bilateral Presidential Commission to launch its activities.

In discussing deadlines for developing the START follow-on treaty, Dmitry Medvedev and Barack Obama agreed to additionally instruct experts to stimulate their efforts in order to reach substantial arrangements by December of this year.

The heads of state also touched on several current international issues, specifically, the after-effect of the 2008 Georgia crisis, as well as the Middle East situation and the Iran nuclear problem.

The Presidents affirmed their mutual intention to continue a sincere and trust-based exchange of opinions and assessments on all matters of relevance to both sides.

Mr Medvedev and Mr Obama also discussed a schedule for communication at various levels in the near future. The conversation ended with the Presidents sending heartfelt greetings to one another’s families.

The telephone conversation was initiated by the Russian side.

Earlier, the President of Russia sent the President of the United States a birthday greeting.

The congratulatory message reads, in part:

“I warmly recall our conversations during your visit to Russia on July 6 and 7, earlier this year. Your predisposition toward sincere dialogue, your focus on concrete results, and your readiness to make major decisions were key to the success of our first full-format summit.

I feel that the outcomes of our meeting in Moscow allow us to talk about the prospects for building constructive cooperation between Russia and the United States based on the principles of mutual respect and taking into account one another’s interests.

Still, there is much to be done in securing and developing our agreements, for the positive trends in the bilateral relations to transform into tangible achievements. I am certain that this is precisely what our nations expect from us. I hope our joint activities will be characterised by such a pragmatic atmosphere.”