Moscow, July 15 (IANS) Croatian President Kolinda Grabar-Kitarovic has presented Russian President Vladimir Putin with a Croatian national team jersey in red and white with the number 9 and the name Putin written on it. After that, Kitarovic and Putin began their bilateral talks.
Putin accepted the gift with a smile. The Croatian leader explained that the jersey is "for tonight", reports Tass news agency.
Grabar-Kitarovic was wearing a pantsuit in traditional Croatian colours: red and white.
Putin has welcomed his Croatian counterpart in Kremlin.
"First of all, I want to congratulate your team on their successful participation in the World Cup," the Russian president said during the talks with Grabar-Kitarovic. "I am sure that tonight, we will witness an interesting and beautiful game."
The Russian leader assured that Russia did everything to create the necessary condition for all players, including the Croatian team.
"I think that our teams have played very well, too, we played beautifully and with dignity, and made millions of fans proud," the Russian president said, commenting on the quarterfinals match between Russia and Croatia.
During the talks, Putin noted that the relations between the two countries are developing successfully, and last year, there was an increase in turnover for the first time since 2014.
"The same can be noted during the first quarter of this year - steady growth," he said, adding that the volume of accumulated Russian investments in Croatia's economy reaches about $400 million. "I hope that this figure will grow," the Russian president added.
