In his address Viktor Zubkov said, in part:

Today we are turning a new page in Russian-Dutch cooperation.

Today Mr Rutte will have official talks with the president and the prime minister of Russia to discuss a wide array of bilateral issues and international issues of concern for both countries.

In this context we have a good opportunity to delve deeply into bilateral trade, economic and investment cooperation and informally discuss specific cooperation areas outlined by the Joint Economic Cooperation Commission and the Russian-Dutch Business Dialogue and fixed by the Joint Programme of Action for 2011 to 2013 signed this year in Moscow.

As Mr Prime Minister just pointed out, Russia and the Netherlands have long cooperated closely in energy, the development of transport infrastructure, healthcare, and medical science. Our main goal today is to expand and reinforce existing ties and try to address issues on the economic agenda while continuing to search for new areas of cooperation.

This country is on a track of economic modernisation, enhancing its energy efficiency and increasing the use of renewable energy sources. We have a series of extremely interesting joint innovation projects and much groundwork has been done at the conjunction of biofuel energy and agriculture which we will also discuss today.

I would also like to point out our cooperation in healthcare modernisation. We expect to strengthen both private and public-private partnerships with Dutch companies. We can cooperate with small and mid-sized businesses rather than just large companies. The development of the healthcare system in Russia's regions and rural areas is of a special interest to us. A separate working group on healthcare was set up within the Russian-Dutch Joint Economic Cooperation Commission this May. It will be providing the necessary practical assistance for the development of bilateral partnership in this area.

In addition, we need to discuss cooperation in the transport and logistics infrastructure. We are introducing the Dutch model of airport hub development. We used this concept when we updated the new terminals at Sheremetyevo Airport. Let's work together on the reconstruction of Pulkovo Airport.

Transport and infrastructure are becoming ever more topical in the view of Russia's preparation to host the 2018 FIFA World Cup. And we discussed this with our Dutch partners at the seventh session of the Joint Economic Cooperation Commission this May.

We also have bright prospects for mutually beneficial cooperation in the transfer of knowledge and technology.

Cooperation between Russia and the Netherlands has a bright future. Our trade is on the rise. There are good possibilities to enhance cooperation.

I wish all conference participants successful work.