During his visit to Israel, President Vladimir Putin said that the Jewish people, like the Russian people, had suffered immensely heavy losses during World War II, but Nazi aggression did not break the will of these two peoples, both of whom defended their right to live in freedom and choose their own road of development.
Mr Putin expressed his confidence that the victory celebrations on May 9 would become another symbol of the international community’s unity in the fight against the threat of terrorism.
There can be no place for xenophobia, chauvinism or religious intolerance in the twenty-first century.
Mr Putin noted that the agreements reached with the Israeli leadership during his visit will help to resolve this problem in Russia, for which, as a multiethnic state, any manifestations of nationalism have a destructive effect.
The President promised to provide continued support for the Jewish community’s activities in Russia.