Official website of the President of Russia

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Prime Minister of Japan Shinzo Abe (retranslated): Mr President, it is a great pleasure to welcome you to Japan.

As we all know, this is your first visit to Japan in 11 years. I am very happy to be able to receive you this time in my hometown of Nagato.

I hope you will enjoy Japan’s wonderful nature, our excellent cuisine, and perhaps, this evening, you might relax in the hot springs.

It is true that bathing in the hot springs is a way to simply wash all your weariness away. I therefore promise that after our meeting, you will have the chance to relax in the hot springs.

President of Russia Vladimir Putin: Thank you very much, Mr Prime Minister.

Thank you for the invitation, and especially for this opportunity to visit your hometown.

We meet on a regular basis and last saw each other in Peru. We see that, thanks to your efforts, our bilateral relations have made progress. My colleagues and I hope that our meetings today and tomorrow will make a substantial contribution to further developing these ties.

Thank you very much for the opportunity to visit the wonderful sights here, including the hot springs, which, as you said, offer relaxation. It is better not to get too weary in the first place, though the hot springs are certainly worth a visit.

Thank you very much indeed.

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