
"I think we should work towards universal and total nuclear disarmament. We should all share this goal. Yet no one should abuse it, using these terms and this field of international philosophical thought for selfish ends."
"the national interests of Japan and Russia coincide on many issues, but more importantly, there will be more and more shared interests in the short, medium and especially in the long term perspective. Proceeding from these considerations we should do everything to eliminate any irritants in our bilateral ties. As soon as Japan and Russia feel that there are no such irritants, from that moment we will adopt a different terminology. I would like it to happen as soon as possible."
"A considerable part of Russia's territory is located in Asia but we are aware - and so is Japan - that the population density is very low there but the resources are enormous. And considering the development rates of Asia and the Pacific, Russia should by all means use its Asian advantages, its Asian roots, so to speak, in order to integrate itself in this economic space."
"Incidentally, 60% of the energy resources from the Sakhalin project are supplied to the Japanese market. When the oil pipe approaches the Pacific Ocean, Japan will have more opportunities to avail itself of this resource. However, we expect Japanese companies to show interest in expanding their investment in all the fields."
"There is also timber processing, machine building, which I have mentioned, space - we are taking part in the International Space Station programme - and telecommunications. We have already carried out the project on laying two optical fibre cables between Russia and Japan. We also have timber processing, as I have already said, chemistry and metallurgy. In fact, our Japanese partners and friends can take part in projects in any Russian region."
"This is all the more topical as President Dmitry Medvedev has recently announced the Russian proposal to conclude a new comprehensive energy treaty. We expect it to be an essential contribution to normalising European energy relations, and provide a sound legal basis for due consideration of the interests of all participants in the process - manufacturers, transit countries and companies, and main consumers."
"The energy industry remains among the top priorities of our partnership. We talked in great detail today about the Belene nuclear plant construction and, to my mind, we have arrived at a very interesting means of implementing this project, which is essential for our two countries and the entire region."
"Much has been done in the previous years in the sphere of training personnel for Iraq in diverse areas. We also discussed it today. Many thousands of Iraqi specialists had been trained in the Soviet Union and Russia. Today too Iraqi students study at our higher education institutions. Cooperation in that sphere can and undoubtedly will expand."
"Iraq has been our reliable partner for many years, and we have a good history of relations. The last decade has seen a great amount of mutual work between our two countries. We are keen on seeing Iraq flourish, becoming a strong, independent, sovereign and united country. There is much we can do to develop our bilateral economic ties. Our companies have sound experience of working with our Iraqi partners. This cooperation is a very good asset for the future."
"Regarding business and investment links, I think it is clear to everyone that the emphasis was above all on cooperation in the oil and gas field. Here, just as in the power sector, considerable positive experience of cooperation has been accumulated. We have noted the interest of our Iraqi partners in resuming military and military-technical cooperation. These negotiations are already at the stage of practical contacts and I believe that full-scale negotiations may well be resumed."
