While accepting the credentials of 13 new ambassadors to Moscow, Medvedev told the new ambassador from Singapore, Simon Tensing, that "relations between Russia and the Republic of Singapore were developing at a fast pace" and that he was "grateful for the invitation to visit during the APEC summit."
The Asian-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit will be hosted this year by Singapore.
"I hope that this visit, the first in the history of our relations, will serve as a further expansion of our bilateral cooperation," Medvedev said.
Russia has regularly participated in the APEC summits since 1999. APEC comprises the countries of Australia, Brunei, Vietnam, Indonesia, Canada, China, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Peru, Russia, South Korea, Singapore, the United States, Hong Kong, Thailand, the Philippines, Chile, Japan, and Taiwan.
Singapore is an island nation in Southeast Asia with a territory of 699 square kilometers (435 square miles). Diplomatic relations between the Soviet Union and Singapore were established on June 1, 1968. After the collapse of the Soviet Union, Singapore recognized the Russian Federation on January 2, 1992.
