A meeting of deputies with a delegation of the Moscow City Duma was held at the Parliament of South Ossetia.
Speaker of the Parliament Alan Margiev welcomed the guests on behalf of President of the Republic Alan Gagloev and the entire deputy corps.
"Russia is our main ally and strategic partner, which today, in difficult conditions, continues to provide comprehensive support to our Republic. We are grateful and appreciate this," Margiev said.
He also noted the active interaction of South Ossetia with the State Duma, the Federation Council, the Parliament of North Ossetia and the legislative bodies of a number of Russian regions.
"We are working on the cooperation agreement with the Moscow City Duma and are confident that all the necessary procedures will soon be completed, and we will sign this document. This will allow us to further strengthen and develop our partnership," he said.
First Deputy Speaker of the Parliament Zita Besaeva, for her part, noted the importance of interaction between the legislative body of South Ossetia and parliamentarians of the Russian Federation.
"Exchange of experience and opinions is extremely important for us. Inter-parliamentary cooperation helps to solve many problems facing our state. We are familiar with your activities, and the contribution you have made to the development of South Ossetia is very valuable for us and our people. We are very grateful to you," Besaeva has noted.
The head of the delegation, deputy of the Moscow City Duma Tatyana Batysheva thanked the South Ossetian parliamentarians for the warm welcome and presented Alan Margiev with a doll made by children from the Scientific and Practical Center for Children's Psycho neurology in Moscow.
"We know that there are no strangers' children. Our children from the center, having learned about the trip to South Ossetia, made this gift - bread and salt from Moscow for South Ossetia. This doll is special because it was created by the children with difficult diagnoses. They see the world differently, and this makes the doll valuable," Batysheva has noted.
The delegation has included a native of South Ossetia, the Moscow City Duma deputy Sabina Tsvetkova. She expressed joy at returning to her homeland.
"I am pleased to be here because this is my home. Once my family and I left for Moscow, but my love for my native land has not faded. Today I am here, and this is a special moment for me," she said.
Alan Margiev thanked Tatyana Batysheva and Sabina Tsvetkova, noting that in 2008 they provided great assistance to South Ossetia in humanitarian matters.
The delegation of the Moscow City Duma has also included deputies Milena Avimskaya and Alexander Davankov, as well as the Duma staff.
For the South Ossetian part at the meeting were also the head of the Committee on Foreign Policy and Inter-parliamentary Relations Zaza Driaev, the Chairman of the Committee on Social Policy and Health Care Alexander Pliev and others.
