Official website of the President of Russia

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President of Russia Dmitry Medvedev: Mr President, ladies and gentlemen,

We are pleased to be here on this first official Russian visit to Peru in the history of bilateral relations.

Mr President, you have talked interestingly about history. I agree certain points in history not only bring us together, but bind us. You mentioned two global figures, Karl Marx and Mr Francisco de Miranda. I can tell you frankly: I don’t have a Marx sculpture at home, but I do have a de Miranda bust. This means something, doesn’t it?

However, I think that our common history and the events of the 18th, 19th and 20th centuries have shown that we can not only plan economic projects and develop cultural relations together, but we can also enrich each other socially, we can help each other develop human ties.

You mentioned that many Peruvians had studied in the Soviet Union, which is true. We would like the number of bilateral contacts to grow, so that more students will come to Moscow and other Russian cities to study. During its stay in Lima, our delegation has talked with many people who had been educated in the Soviet Union. You know, such ties are very important. They are the strongest link between our people, as I mentioned at our one-to-one meeting.

Although our trade has not been big in the past few years – this is really so, I think that we have made several important moves towards promoting our relations today. I am referring to the economic agreements we have signed and the declaration on developing partnership.

If we work hard – and I think we can do so, which is why the Russian delegation is big, and which is why we see our Peruvian partners here – we will advance our relations to the level they deserve. And then we will have trade assessed at hundreds of millions, and possibly even billions of dollars. I can say that equipment now shipped from Russia is making our relations stronger than they were 20–30 years ago. Most importantly, our people are using the fruits of our cooperation, which is the goal politicians should strive for and the essence of the current visit by our delegation.

I would like to once again thank you, Mr President, and your team for the excellent organisation of the summit. We have talked with our colleagues from other countries during the summit, and they agree that we will remember this visit for its quality planning, the events here and the wonderful welcome given to us. Taken together, this helps in addressing the most complicated issues facing humankind.

These are obvious problems. The international financial crisis, which has developed recently not through any fault of ours, but which all countries have to deal with, is a challenge that needs a comprehensive, adequate and effective response. I believe that the APEC summit in Lima will help find this response. Our bilateral contacts, our agreements can also make a contribution, even if small, to overcoming the crisis. This is exactly what we intend to do.

Mr President, I once again express our gratitude for organising our visit and the summit, and for your kind and sincere words.

Thank you.

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President’s response speech after he was awarded the Peruvian Order of the Sun

Dmitry Medvedev: Mr President,

I am deeply grateful for your decision to bestow this high award on me. This is as an honour to me and to the Russian Federation, and also clear evidence of our intentions to strengthen bilateral relations in all spheres. This is the wish of our countries’ leaders, meaning you and me, and also of our people.

Thank you, Mr President; it was a pleasure to receive this order from you.