“I would like to greet the delegates at the ASEAN business summit, a major event in South East Asia’s economic life. I am convinced that the summit’s decisions will promote regional integration and determine a strategy for forming an open and common economic space in the Asia-Pacific Region.
“Indicatively, the first Russia-ASEAN business forum, highlighting the two region’s mutual interests and their determination to expand cooperation and search for new types of economic ties, will be held as part of this major event in Kuala Lumpur.
“Russia attaches great importance to its relations with ASEAN and views it as an influential regional association and as one of the centres of the emerging multi-polar world. It is our intention to promote all aspects of mutually advantageous cooperation and to more fully utilise the existing potential.
“I firmly believe that through our concerted efforts we will manage to attain a new and higher level of economic, scientific, technical and investment interaction.
“I hope that the work of the delegates at the ASEAN business summit and the Russia-ASEAN business forum is successful and fruitful.”
VLADIMIR PUTIN