Official website of the President of Russia

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Vladimir Putin: I am pleased to welcome you to Russia. I am very glad to be able to meet you and to get to know you personally.

I must say that not only I, but the Russian leadership in general, believe that of late, after you became the head of the Bulgarian state, the relations between our countries are changing for the better. It is not only the fact that our trade has been growing, I think it is now around 1.5 billion, and we will discuss that topic in detail today, but also the atmosphere of the relations between our two states has without any doubt been improving. Of course, we should translate the improved political climate into improving our interaction in the fields of the economy, culture and education. We have things to discuss here because our two states and peoples historically have close ties. I know that people in Bulgaria also cherish our common history, just like people here in Russia. I am very pleased to see you. Welcome.