On the Russian side, the meeting was attended by Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak, Deputy Chief of Staff of the Presidential Executive Office Maxim Oreshkin, Deputy Chief of Staff of the Presidential Executive Office, Presidential Press Secretary Dmitry Peskov, Presidential Aide Yury Ushakov, Defence Minister Andrei Belousov, Minister of Industry and Trade Anton Alikhanov, Minister of Energy Sergei Tsivilev, Director of the Federal Service for Military Technical Cooperation Dmitry Shugayev, Head of the Federal Service for the Oversight of Consumer Protection and Welfare Anna Popova, Director General of State Atomic Energy Corporation Rosatom Alexei Likhachev, and Rosoboronexport Director General Alexander Mikheyev.
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President of Russia Vladimir Putin: Mr President, I am pleased to offer you my heartfelt welcome.
Our meeting today is tied to celebrating Victory in the Great Patriotic War Day. I am aware that in 1940–1943, the anti-fascist movement Free France was based in your present-day capital Brazzaville. It was headed by a man whom we remember, know, and treat him and his memory with great respect. The leader of that movement was future President of France Charles de Gaulle. He created the Free France movement headquartered in Brazzaville. I know that the Congolese people actively supported these activities.
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Your participation in the May 9 events confirms the genuine friendly nature of bilateral ties based on law and mutual respect. Last year, we marked the 60th anniversary of diplomatic relations between our countries.
Mr President, we appreciate your focus on our relations. You have visited our country many times back in the days of the Soviet Union, and more recently as well.
The mutual trade remains stable. It may be modest overall, but we are constantly working to achieve the results that we have in mind. Congolese national staff has been successfully trained in Russia for a long time now, with about 750 Congolese students currently studying at our universities and about 250 state scholarships are allocated annually. We are ready to expand this quota.
Russia and the Republic of the Congo stand in solidarity in their approaches to addressing many pressing international issues. We appreciate our joint work at the UN.
I would like to emphasise that strengthening ties with Africa is on the list of Russia’s foreign policy systemic priorities. The St Petersburg summit resulted in adopting an extensive package of joint documents, including a comprehensive declaration and an action plan to 2026. Work is in progress to put them into practice.
Today, we have the opportunity to discuss all these issues, including the bilateral agenda.
Mr President, let me emphasise once again how pleased I am to see you.
Welcome to Russia!
President of the Republic of the Congo Denis Sassou Nguesso (retranslated): Thank you, Mr President, dear friend.
I would like to sincerely thank you for the opportunity to take part in the events marking the 80th anniversary of the Victory in the Great Patriotic War. Thank you for your efforts.
As you have mentioned, Brazzaville was the capital of the Free France movement. Following the occupation of France by Nazi Germany, the country was essentially left with no territory of its own, retaining only its colonies. Some of them were controlled by the Vichy regime. It was in Brazzaville, in Central Africa, that Charles de Gaulle established the Free France movement and set up its headquarters.
Forces from Congo, Gabon, the Central African Republic, Cameroon, and Chad joined this movement. These Central African nations stood against Nazism, with their troops making their way to Paris as part of the 2nd Armoured Division and participating in the historic parade on the Champs-Élysées. We saw the traces left by the French troops with our own eyes.
Some have chosen to mention only the French troops in the context of Victory – but Congolese soldiers were among those marching on the Champs-Élysées as well. Mr President, the people of Africa were part of this movement, and we are immensely proud of this legacy.
We value the fact that you remember this and remember our contribution to the fight against Nazism, both our military and economic efforts. Our people worked to produce rubber, an essential material we needed for road construction. We also mined gold to finance our struggle.
This year, as we participate in the official celebrations marking the Great Victory, we would like to honour the shared sacrifices made by our peoples. More than 20 million soldiers lost their lives on the battlefield. They made history. Those were the troops of the Soviet Union who first entered Berlin, raising the flag over the Reichstag.
We would like to pay tribute and bow down to their heroism and courage. They marched all the way from Moscow to Berlin. This is a moment of shared remembrance for us and for everybody.
I should note that some have made attempts to dissuade us from attending these events. Nevertheless, we are here today. Thank you, Mr President, for the warm reception extended to our delegation upon arrival, as has always been the case.
I would also like to highlight the joint efforts we are making to consolidate and intensify our cooperation in the defence sector as well as the work to equip our law enforcement agencies and train both civilian and military personnel, as you have already mentioned. There are opportunities in other sectors as well, such as energy.
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