Opening the meeting, President Putin congratulated Rosaviakosmos and its Director, Yuri Koptev, a member of the Russian delegation, on the successful launch of a spacecraft carrying a joint Russian-American crew. Mr Putin underlined that from that moment on the ISS (International Space Station) would be inhabited. He noted that French specialists were also taking an active part in the project and added that one of the next missions to the ISS would have a French astronaut in the crew.
Speaking about economic cooperation between the two countries, Mr Putin said that Russia viewed foreign investment as a very important factor contributing to its integration in the global economy.
During the meeting, the participants discussed further expanding French business in Russia.