"The key task of the government bodies is to create the necessary conditions for the development of the domestic agriculture that can compete with imported goods in terms of price and quality," Mr Zubkov said. "We must tackle these problems so that Russia could become - and it will become - a real food exporter after 2012."

During his speech Vladimir Putin dwelled on the issues of education in Russia.

"It is great that in spite of competition in education, the leading German universities recognise the MISiS diploma. I very much hope that this cooperation will continue in the future, not only in education and science but also in production."

"Deutsche Bank is active all over Russia today. Last year, if my memory does not fail me, Deutsche Bank administered over 10 IPOs for Russian companies helping to promote our companies in world markets. A large amount of work has been done."

"I would like to note that we are happy with the way trade and economic links between Russia and Moldova are developing. You only have to look at the rate at which our trade is growing. Last year it stood at $1 billion. This is a good indicator. I am sure that we have grounds to expect that our relations will continue developing at the same pace."