Transcript of the beginning of the meeting:
Vladimir Putin: Your Majesty, allow me to welcome you once again here in Moscow. I know that President Medvedev has already done so, and with pleasure. We know that you are a great friend of our country and we are pleased to see you in Russia.
What underlies any relations between states are issues of an economic nature more than anything else, and I regret to say that in 2010 trade between our countries was down even from 2009. It is even more regrettable that this was largely our fault, because we stopped shipping grain to the Jordanian market. I wish to assure you that we will do our best to make up for these shipments in the years to come because we want to regain the image of a reliable partner as the situation on the grain market improves. The problem was that our agriculture had faced very adverse and abnormal weather conditions for two years running.
The economy is not, however, the only important issue for our nations. Culture and education are also important. There are 600 Jordanian students receiving an education in Russia, and we are prepared to continue this cooperation. We are also interested in developing tourism. I know that your government has set aside some land for the Moscow government to build the required tourist complex. We will support any project in this area.
I also wish to thank you for backing the project to build a Russian Orthodox centre on the banks of the River Jordan. I remember the enthusiasm with which one of your family members described to me the prospects for tourism, including both pilgrims and those interested in history. And, of course, we are prepared to continue our cooperation in the military technical field. We have many areas for cooperation. And we are happy to see you.
Abdullah II (Via interpreter): Mr Prime Minister, I thank you very much. I am delighted to be here and to see you. We very much value the relations both with you personally and between our two countries. And as you just mentioned, we have so many opportunities for cooperation. Russian industry may find many areas for cooperation: for example, nuclear power, railway development, and various infrastructure projects. Other types of business cooperation also offer many opportunities. I hope my visit today will help us explore new avenues for cooperation. As you said, tourism is one of the key market segments we can pursue, and not only ordinary tourism, but also religious tourism. We highly value the role of the Russian Orthodox Church, which is very strong in Jerusalem. I am very pleased to be here and hope we will develop relations between our two countries further.
Vladimir Putin: Thank you.