Vladimir Putin: Mr Gainutdin, I would like to congratulate you and all Muslims living in Russia on the holiday of Eid ul-Fitr. I met with His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia last night and he, aware of my plans for today, asked me to congratulate you and wish you all the best.

Mufti Ravil Gainutdin: A double pleasure.

Vladimir Putin: Eid ul-Fitr is a special holiday. Not because Muslims can finally eat during the day after Ramadan, but, primarily, because people have individually undergone a particular trial and are now in a position to sum up the results of their spiritual development. It is on this day that Allah gave Prophet Mohammed the first lines of the Koran. Eid ul-Fitr is a special holiday because it is a time when people help each other, remember each other's problems and help those in need. I noticed that today people ask each other for forgiveness. This is a very special holiday. It is a joyous time, a time for friendship, solidarity and mutual support, but more than this, it is a holiday of peace.

It is a sad fact indeed that some people choose such a joyous holiday to perpetrate such terrible crimes, as the act of terrorism that took place in Vladikavkaz today and in which people died. No doubt those behind it are heartless people without souls. They have nothing sacred in them. It is our common duty to fight these crimes, and these terrorists, and we hope that Muslims living in Russia will make a decisive contribution to this fight. I know how Muslims view such extremists. Especially in the North Caucasus their support is both tangible and visible. We are grateful for this support and hope to overcome all these difficulties together.

Mufti Ravil Gainutdin: Inshallah. Your Excellency, Mr Putin, sincerely, on behalf of all Russia's Muslims, I would like to thank you for your good wishes. Today I had the opportunity to pass them on to all Russian Muslims as I congratulated them on Eid ul-Fitr.

The words in your letter, your congratulations, correspond to the fact that Russia is a place of interethnic and inter-faith harmony. Muslims make their contribution to the development of our country's spiritual life and its morals and they will continue to help preserve peace across the entire country.

When I visit the North Caucasus, I meet with Muslims and hear how proud they are that they were the first to stand against these extremists and terrorists. If Muslims had not started fighting the extremists and the terrorists, our federal forces would find the Chechen Republic a very difficult place indeed. As my Chechen brothers, the Dagestanis and the Ingush say: "We have preserved unity and wholeness across the south, we did not allow our country to be dismembered from the south." I can assure you that Muslim spiritual leaders and ordinary believers want Russia to retain its wholeness and be strong and revered throughout the world. We will continue our concerted efforts to fight religious extremists and terrorists going forward.

You mentioned today that, sadly, even on this holiday, some inhuman people see fit to perpetrate such crimes. We express our condolences for all those who have lost family members and friends. In my celebratory sermon I mentioned that Prophet Mohammed told Muslims, "If someone spills blood, killing an innocent person, this crime equals the destruction of Kaaba itself." That indicates how gravely our Creator views this sin!

I reminded our brothers and sisters today that we must keep peace and fight those sins we have. We must never spill blood or kill innocent people.

I think the faithful understood me. Those who do not attend mosques do not enter the path of instruction, are enemies of our religion and enemies of our community. So I am exceedingly grateful for your congratulations and condemn those terrorists who cannot stop even on a sacred holiday, and who cannot live without shedding blood and without sowing the seeds of enmity among our peoples.

I am sure that our Russian society is mature. Our Muslims, our citizens, Russians, will not allow this to spread throughout our land. We will carry out a serious battle against all such extremists and terrorists.

Vladimir Putin: Mr Gainutdin, thank you very much for your words of condolence and for your courageous position. I know how many Muslim religious leaders have been killed by terrorists after speaking out against terrorism and extremism. Russia is a multi-confessional, multinational country, and Muslims live all over the entire country. Only half of our Muslims live in traditional Muslim regions, a little more than a half.

Mufti Ravil Gainutdin: Yes, you quite right.

Vladimir Putin: Over 40% of our Muslims live in other regions of the Russian Federation. Crimes like the one committed in Vladikavkaz today aim to sow the seeds of enmity among our peoples. We do not have the right to allow this to happen.

Of course, Muslims themselves should play a decisive role in this fight. We are grateful to you for this position. And, no doubt, we will work together to eradicate this phenomenon once and for all.