Prime Minister [Shinzō Abe] and I have spoken a lot, and we said all the right things, in my opinion, about creating an atmosphere of trust and friendship between our nations and peoples.

Here we have 40 million Russian citizens involved in the sphere of agriculture one way or another. This is very important.

The Baltic republics have invented something totally new. Do you know what? They use the word 'non-citizens' for people who have been living for decades in the territory of Baltic states and have been deprived of a number of political rights. They cannot participate in the election campaigns; they have limited political and social rights. Everybody keeps quiet about it, as if this is the way it should be. Of course, this cannot but cause a certain reaction.

I consider the decision of my colleagues and friends to be the best birthday present.

The transfer of power is always a test of the constitutional system, a test of its strength.

The Russian people chose democracy at the beginning of the 1990s and this was their final choice.

Sanctions against such country as Russia are unlikely to be effective.