The President declared that the Russian state has always preserved its ethnic identity and confessional diversity, and that no historical divisions have affected the people's desire to live in one home.
Bashkortostan's joining Russia was an important step in the Russian state's process of becoming a multinational Eurasian power.
In the afternoon the President laid flowers on the Friendship Monument that symbolizes the unity of the Russian and Bashkir peoples.
The Friendship Monument was erected in Ufa in honour of the 400th anniversary of Bashkortostan's voluntary joining Russia. At the monument's base there are two bronze female figures that symbolize Bashkortostan and Russia. The inscription on the obelisk reads: ”1557 to 1957. Glory to the great fraternal friendship of the Russian and Bashkir peoples!“.