Transcript of the address:

Good afternoon.

First of all, I'd like to thank President Chavez of the Republic of Venezuela and all our colleagues for the sympathy and support they have expressed for the Russian people following the tragic and inhuman acts of terrorism in Moscow and Dagestan.

I would also like to thank Vice President Elías Jaua of Venezuela, Foreign Minister Nicolas Maduro, Energy Minister Rafael Ramirez, the ambassador of the Republic of Venezuela in Moscow and all our colleagues in this hall for the wonderful reception they have given us from the moment we arrived in Venezuela.

I'd like to reiterate what my colleague, Mr Vice President, has said. Indeed, Russia is paying special attention to our relationship with Venezuela. The projects we are carrying out jointly are the focus of much attention in Russia. Confirmation of this fact can be found in the composition of our delegation, which includes top managers from Russia's major companies as well as heads of ministries and departments.

I'd also like to emphasize the special nature of our work today and over the next few days. This work will be a prelude to Prime Minister Vladimir Putin's visit to Venezuela, which we expect will result in great things.

I'm confident that both the Russian and Venezuelan representatives will do everything they can to ensure that our meeting is productive and that it makes a worthy contribution to the preparations for the meeting of our leaders.

The last few years have seen a great deal of contact between our presidents, prime ministers and heads of ministries and companies. We are expecting the president of the Republic of Venezuela to visit Moscow at the invitation of his Russian counterpart. Such visits are good opportunities for progress in our work.

We are meeting at a difficult time. Both Russia and Venezuela has been affected by the global financial crisis. Our countries share the view that now the main goal is to solve social problems and guarantee our citizens a dignified life. The high-level of our cooperation will ensure that we find additional ways out of this economic predicament.

We hope that the recent agreements and the ongoing talks between Russian and Venezuelan companies on a broad range of projects will allow us to considerably increase the amount of trade and services between our countries and improve the lives of our citizens.

The list of projects is impressive. We hope that the seventh meeting of the commission and the talks between the Venezuelan president and the Russian prime minister will produce breakthrough agreements in various spheres, which we will be drafting.

I'm referring to cooperation in agriculture, transport infrastructure, education, finance and investment, the formation of an emergency centre and a cultural exchange programme. Cooperation in the field of energy is a priority as well.

We hope that our work in the next few days will culminate in the signing of concrete contracts to supply Venezuela with products from the Russian automobile industry. We are working on agreements in other areas as well.

Russia views the climate problems, which are creating negativity for Venezuela, with sympathy. This is why the energy ministries of our two countries are working on a programme of cooperation in electricity generation. We hope to map out a specific programme of joint action to improve the situation.

Our leaders are meeting against the backdrop of important events. I am talking about the 200th anniversary of Venezuela's independence and the 65th anniversary of Russia's victory in the Great Patriotic War. We believe these events will provide added incentives to work together. We all feel a deep sense of responsibility to achieve positive results.

Again, I would like to thank my colleagues for their assistance, their constructive attitude and for the comfortable working conditions. I hope all the participants in the meeting can work productively and that they will reach concrete agreements.

Thank you very much.