MILAN, June 1 (RIA Novosti) - The programs of international youth exchanges are perceptibly beneficial to the young generation of Russia's inhabitants, wife of Russia's president Lyudmila Putina believes.
"I would like children from different countries to learn about each other not from films or magazines but through personal contacts, so that children would understand that we differ little from one another, that all of us are people, and that we have common wishes, ambitions and aims," she said in the interview with Russian journalists during the work of the Orlyonok (Eaglet) international meeting of children of Russia and Italy.
"Of course, I would like every child to have a chance to make trips to other countries on the exchange basis," the president's wife noted speaking of the Orlyonok project which was carried out by the Moscow Centre of Development of the Russian Language. About 120 children from Russia and Italy, who won creative competitions, participated in it. The forum's first stage was held in Moscow, and the second in Milan.
"It is the most successful of our four exchange projects which we implemented up-till now, and it became such due to both sides' efforts and cooperation," said the wife of Russia's president, who gives substantial attention to holding such forums.
"As for a possibility for every child to participate in an exchange, it seems to me that it is already a state matter," the president's wife believes.
Lyudmila Putina noted that the international exchanges allow schoolchildren not only to study foreign languages but also to more carefully treat the native tongue. "It has always seemed to me that the Russian language is a very capacious notion, that it is not only a language as it is but is also culture, and the economy, and other aspects of life," the head of state's wife said.
"They have been treating the Russian language very freely of late," she noted. "The language, being a living organism and keeping pace with time, continuously becomes renovated. This notwithstanding, it is necessary to speak literately and in a fine manner," the president's wife said with confidence.
Lyudmila Putina also called upon parents to respect the child's rights. "It seems to me that to love your child means first of all to know its wishes, to turn an attentive ear to them, and to respect them. That is why I want to wish parents to be attentive to their children," she said on the eve of International Children's Day.
Lyudmila Putina also noted that it is important to respect children's desires. "Not to indulge all of the children's caprices but to respect the children's wishes and rights," she went on to say.
"And I want to wish children happy and cloudless childhood," the wife of the Russian Federation's president said in conclusion.
