MOSCOW. Sept 25 (Interfax) - Russia supports all legitimate bodies of authority of Venezuela, including the presidency, as well as President Nicolas Maduro's dialogue with the opposition, Russian President Vladimir Putin told Maduro at a meeting in Moscow on Wednesday.
"Russia unwaveringly supports every legitimate body of authority of Venezuela, including the presidency and the parliament. We also support the dialogue, which you, Mr. President, and the government are carrying out with opposition forces. We think that any refusal to hold this dialogue would be irrational, harmful for the country, and dangerous for the people's wellbeing," Putin said.
Moscow always supports legitimate authorities, he said.
Maduro, in turn, said that Moscow and Caracas "have proven capable of overcoming any difficulties together." "We are cooperating in a variety of fields. The High-Level Intergovernmental Commission met in May, and many of the addressed issues were successfully resolved. This has happened in many areas, such as food, healthcare, energy, and others," he said.
Today's meeting will sum up the results of the work carried out this year, and "will look into outstanding problems, realities faced by both sides, progress made in a number of areas, and plans for the future," Maduro said.
"We always feel comfortable in Moscow and are always glad to be here," he said.