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President Vladimir Putin:

Good afternoon, colleagues,

First of all, I would like once again to congratulate you on the 10th anniversary of the Russian Constitution. You remember as well as I do, and maybe even better, the conditions in which it was passed and the role it played.

Of course, it took a long time for the situation in the country to stabilize, and to reach a situation from which it is possible to start in our development. And of course, the Constitution alone is not enough for this. But everyone understands that it is the necessary condition for the country to develop along the path of democracy, along the path of solving social issues and economic development. Without this, it would be impossible to do anything.

I want to thank you for your collective work over all these years, for your balanced, unbiased position based on a high level of professionalism, the knowledge of the Basic Law, the Constitution, and not just its basic statues, not just the letter of the law, but the spirit of the law, and for your professionalism in various areas of law. The constitution affects all the areas of the life of society and the state, and almost every person. On this basis, we have been able to achieve a great deal.

Above all, it has been possible, to a significant degree with your help, to bring statutory documents and the constitutions of subjects of the Russian Federation into accordance with the Constitution – the Basic Law of the Russian Federation, , to bring an enormous series of laws into accordance with the laws of the Russian Federation, to restore legal unity to almost the full extent, and the legal sphere of the country, which is an extremely important condition for the development of Russia as a whole.

A great deal of work has been done, and we have a result.

Thank you very much, and best wishes for the anniversary once again.