GREETINGS
to the participants of the Greece – Russia Investment Conference
On behalf of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of the Russian federation I am sending this message of greetings to the participants and guests of the Investment Conference “New Horizons for Economic Relations between Greece and Russia”.I am sure that this event will give a new impetus to the bilateral business cooperation, will assist Russian and Greek investors to find qualitatively new areas for capital investment, and will be instrumental in the expansion of interregional cooperation between our countries and the involvement in it of a still greater number of representatives of small and medium businesses.
The fact that the agenda of the Conference focuses on the issues of cooperation in innovative and hi-tech spheres, thus fully corresponding to the tasks facing the economies of Russia and Greece, is a source of special satisfaction.
I wish you, the Conference participants, extensive work and success in establishing new and fruitful contacts.
S.N. Katyrin,
President,
Chamber of Commerce and Industry
Of the Russian Federation
I remember the time of hesitation and reserve, when we decided to look closer into the “new” tourist market of Russia. I remember the satisfaction we felt when we immediately realised that the interest was mutual.The two peoples had the same need: to meet again and to seek their common historical references. We then made a joint decision to make tourism the bridge that would bring us closer. We had confidence in our land and in the “product” that we would offer to the Russian visitor.
Everything they take with them today as memories, every time they visit our islands. The incomparable natural beauty, the bright sun, the clean sea, the flavours, the music. The hospitality and the islanders’ smile, our culture that is evident in every step of their way, our popular tradition, the environment and the sensation that they arrive at a friendly place. They visit places they feel they have visited before and are familiar to them. Maybe it’s because of the people’s temperament; the admiration for a historical and cultural monument. All this is highly appreciated by the Russians – they don’t pass by it. It’s also about Orthodoxy, a bond well forged. For example, a visitor from another country cannot feel the awe and the emotion that a Russian feels when he finds himself in front of an Orthodox Church or a small country church on a small island of the Archipelago. Based on these materials, along with friendship and comprehension, we built our collaboration. Today, we can extend and strengthen these relations. We can seek new fields of collaboration. Dialogue will help us agree on the next steps that we can take together, for the benefit of the two peoples. This dialogue can focus on South Aegean and Rhodes, putting still more solid foundations in what we have built until today. It opens “New Horizons in the Economic – Tourism - Commercial and Investment Relations between Greece and Russia”.Ioannis Machairidis
Regional Governor of South Aegean Region, Greece
