Speaking at the reception, President Putin thanked his hosts for the opportunity to visit Dresden, where he had spent five years.
Mr Putin said Saxony maintained close ties with St Petersburg and other Russian regions, including the Republic of Bashkortostan. In his opinion, there were many promising avenues for such cooperation. The President said that one only had to leave the Russian capital in order to see that the regions were looking forward to expanded German-Russian cooperation.
Dr Biedenkopf praised Mr Putin’s speech in the Bundestag and noted the great importance of the Russian President’s visit to Germany for developing a stronger bilateral partnership.
The Minister-President of Saxony said that the Cold War was over, and that Russia and Germany were now witnessing a new stage of their relations and were making a substantial contribution to building a common European home.