ニュース 2011/11/26 Prime Minister Noda sends personal message to Russian Prime Minister On November 26 and 27, the Director-General of the DPJ International Department Koichiro Watanabe attended the party convention of the United Russia Party, held in Moscow, Russia. Watanabe handed over a personal letter from DPJ President, Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda, addressed to Russian Prime Minister and United Russia leader Vladimir Putin to the Chair of the State Duma International Affairs Committee, Konstantin Kosachev. The letter dealt with the promotion of party-to-party exchanges between the DPJ and United Russia. Watanabe and Kosachev agreed that both parties would discuss and actively promote party-to-party exchanges. Upon receiving Noda’s letter, Kosachev said, “I will be sure to convey this letter to Prime Minister Putin.　I am sure he will give the content of this letter the utmost consideration, and you will receive a response in due course. Party-to-party exchanges are important in fully normalizing relations between Japan and Russia and in developing relations in a variety of areas including trade, economy, and science and technology. In a meeting with the Chair of the Duma Committee on Constitutional Legislation and State-Building Vladimir Pligin, Watanabe also discussed party-to-party exchanges between the DPJ and United Russia. The two sides agreed that there were far too few exchanges between the politicians of the two nations, and that consequently there was a need to strengthen such exchanges. During the meetings with both Kosachev and Pligin, it was agreed that a concrete direction for party-to-party exchanges would be formed from May next year, due to the fact that the party officials responsible on the Russian side would not be determined until the completion of elections for the Duma to be held this December, and the Presidential election of March next year. At the United Russia party convention, Prime Minister Putin was formally confirmed as the party’s official candidate for the upcoming Presidential election. The convention reached its climax with President Medechev and Prime Minister Putin taking to the podium to call for victory in the forthcoming elections for the State Duma and for President.