Official website of the President of Russia

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President of Russia Dmitry Medvedev: First of all, I would like to welcome you. I am very happy to see you, Mr President, not just in Russia, but in this wooded area [the countryside residence in Zavidovo], where you have been before. It was a long time ago, and we are very happy today, almost 25 years later, to have you here; I hope that your visit will yield the necessary results.

Today we will touch base in an informal setting, we will take a walk in the woods as we agreed, and tomorrow, we will hold our official talks. But today, we can also discuss nearly all the issues on the agenda regarding cooperation and teamwork between Russia and Cuba, talk about international issues, and speak about bilateral cooperation.

Once again, welcome to Russia, welcome to the Russian woods.

President of the Cuban Council of State and the Council of Ministers of Cuba, Raul Castro (retranslated from Russian): Thank you very much.

Indeed, when we spoke on the phone, I almost recommended that you take me to the woods. But you did something even better. You invited me to the woods and, one could say, ambushed me here.

I remember that when three hurricanes descended on our country in one month, you called, wanting to know about situation emerging as a result of that calamity, and during our phone conversation, I did indeed say that I missed the Russian forest, that I recalled with a feeling of nostalgia the time when we roasted bacon on a spit over a fire in the woods, wanting to eat it with black bread. For 25 years, I have not had the opportunity to fulfil this desire!

Dmitry Medvedev (laughing): Well, it needs no discussion. We will most certainly eat bacon and bread, and talk about everything that concerns us, and simply take a walk. I even have a film that was taken when Fidel Castro arrived here; there are also some interesting photographs.

Raul Castro: I am, of course, much younger in those photographs.

Dmitry Medvedev: You haven’t changed.

Raul Castro (laughing): I have changed a little bit, at least in spirit. And I have also acquired a few grey hairs.