Official website of the President of Russia

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Vladimir Putin:

Dear gentlemen!

Welcome to this official ceremony for the delivery of letters of credential and congratulations on the beginning of your diplomatic mission in Russia. I hope that this mission will be successful and will allow us to enrich cooperation between our countries and people.

I would like to confirm that our country intends to engage in a productive dialogue and the very widest range of international cooperation. Russia is a consistent supporter of equal partnerships and respect for each other's interests. And based on this reasoning and on international law we aspire to create a more secure and safer world. To do so we are using all forums and channels for cooperation – both bilateral ones and those within international organizations.

Russia's active position within the UN as well as in regional economic and political associations amounts to an essential contribution to global stability and progress.

And we also intend to use Russia's G8 presidency to resolve pressing problems of the 21 st century. You know what our priorities are. They are energy security, education and the struggle against diseases. We are in favour of solidarity action by the international community in these areas. We expect that such cooperation will give a new dynamic to global economic development and significantly increase the quality of life for millions of people on our planet.

Dear colleagues!

Russia is interested in expanding the constructive contacts it entertains with all the countries of the world.

We highly value our relations with the Republic of Guatemala, relations which are marked by mutual respect and friendship. Today it is in both of our interests to raise the level of political dialogue and expand our cooperation in the very widest range of areas, first and foremost in the economy.

We value our traditionally close, long-standing neighbourly relations with Azerbaijan. It is important that from year to year bilateral cooperation in the business, cultural and educational spheres results in new and shared successes. And our extensive political cooperation and mutual trust act as an important factor in stability in the Caucasus. It is an essential factor for the stability of the Caspian region.

Carrying out of Year of Azerbaijan in Russia acts as proof of our peoples' aspirations to draw closer together. And I am convinced that the Year of Russia in Azerbaijan will continue this tradition.

Friendly ties between Russia and Morocco have taken on a new dynamic. Signing the Declaration on the Strategic Partnership in 2002 established a sound basis for our relations in the coming century. I expect that the second session of the Interngovernmental Commission on Economic and Scientific-Technical Cooperation that will be held soon, will provide a new impulse for joint work between Russia and Morocco.

We value our exceptionally close allied relations with Kazakhstan – Russia's strong and reliable partner. We highly value the results of the President of Kazakhstan's recent visit to Moscow. Our talks once again confirmed the general lines along which we will expand and qualitatively enrich our cooperation and strengthen the bases of the common economic space. Among our priorities we count the new joint projects in the space sector and in the high-tech field. We intend to actively deepen our whole range of cultural and educational ties. And I am convinced that carrying out the Year of Abai in Russia and the Year of Pushkin in Kazakhstan will open the way for new striking cultural and creative initiatives.

For many decades the peoples of Russia and Palestine have had relations marked by mutual respect. Our country is interested in achieving a fair and universal settlement in the Middle East. We consider it necessary to renew the peace process on the basis of the Road Map. And to consistently move towards its final goal and establish an independent Palestinian state that peacefully coexists with Israel. Russia is ready to help achieve these goals in the future and to help the Palestinian leadership, government and national administration headed by Mahmoud Abbas.

We give great value to developing friendly ties with the Republic of Ghana. We intend to effectively build on our experience to continue the political dialogue, and to search together for new forms of mutually advantageous cooperation in the spheres of the economy, culture and education.

We consider New Zealand one of Russia's promising partners in the Asia-Pacific region. Compatible approaches towards resolving key issues in international politics will allow us to cooperate more closely within international and regional structures. And of course expanding our trade, economic and cultural relations are on the agenda.

We highly appreciate the relations that have developed between Russia and Egypt, one of the leading countries in the Arab world. Our relations are marked by friendship and cooperation. We have a long-standing successful tradition of cooperation in the most varied areas as our asset. We must actively use it in the interests of economic growth and we must energetically develop contacts in the spheres of culture, education and tourism.

I would like to separately point out the value of contacts with the President of Egypt, including during last year's visit to Cairo, which confirmed the effectiveness of regularly exchanging opinions both on bilateral issues and on regional and international affairs.

In conclusion I would like to congratulate you once again on the official beginning of your diplomatic mission to Russia.

I expect that your professional experience will allow us to raise the level of our mutual relations. As a whole it will help the development of international partnership and allow us to achieve goals that are even more significant for humankind.

I wish you success.

Thank you very much.