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President Vladimir Putin: Once again, I would like to thank you for your invitation. I want to repeat, not only is it pleasant for me to be in a church of the Russian Orthodox Church Abroad, but I am happy with this opportunity, which I see as a very important contribution to the unity of the Russian people – all Russian Orthodox people, whether abroad or on their Russian native ground. Thank you again for giving me the opportunity to bow to the Kursk-root icon, one of the Russian Orthodox Church's most venerated ones. It is also very pleasant for me to sit at this table together with Bishop Mercurius, representative of the Moscow partriarchate of the Russian Orthodox Church.
I know that the dialogue between churches continues. Once again, I want to stress that – whatever the outcome of this dialogue — this is, without any doubt, exclusively the Church's doing. Once again, I want to confirm our readiness to facilitate this process in every possible way.
Allow me to thank you once again for all that you have done over many decades for Russian people who found themselves outside of their country.
September 15, 2005, New York