Back in October of last year I visited Cuba as part of an official delegation from our Youth Affairs Committee. We had a really productive and interesting time there, meeting our Cuban counterparts, who set up lots of meetings and sightseeing trips for us. So of course I wanted to invite the young Cuban deputies to Russia on a return visit to show them what we do in our Committee, in the Duma, the Federation Council, the ministries and other government agencies, and to tell them about the issues we work on every day. My colleagues in the Committee – Pavel Tarakanov, Yuriy Afonin, Pavel Zyryanov and Sergey Belokonev – supported me, and so we invited the Cubans to visit Russia.

Incidentally, while I was in Cuba I also visited the national school of rhythmic gymnastics, where I saw some little girls in training. They have remarkable natural abilities – amazing flexibility, they’re so plastic and elegant, and always smiling. So anyway, I was really impressed by the little girls and wanted them to take part in our rhythmic gymnastics festival. So then I thought it would be logical to time the deputies’ visit to coincide with the festival, so that all the Cuban guests came to Moscow at the same time and could see our festival.

During the spring of 2011 I worked hard with the Committee on the invitations for the Cuban deputies and gymnasts, because they have quite a strict migration policy in Cuba and not every adult is able to leave the country freely, not to mention a whole group of children. There were some difficulties getting foreign passports, and right up to the last moment we weren’t sure whether the girls would be allowed to travel abroad. But it all turned out well, and in the second week of May we were visited by the young deputies and gymnasts. The girls and their trainers moved into the training centre and spent virtually every day preparing for the festival – training sessions, rehearsals, run-throughs, sewing their costumes…They lived together with the team from Tskhinval (South Ossetia) and made great friends during that time, despite the language barrier.



For the people’s deputies – the girls Jamile, Ibis, Naila and Liaena, and the young man Morlote – we put together a very varied and full programme. First of all, I wanted to show them Russia: its distinctive identity, beauty, expanse and multifaceted character. Obviously that’s not quite so easy to do in the relatively short period of time they spent here, but still we came up with quite a full cultural programme. This included a sightseeing trip around Moscow, a visit to the Kremlin, the Armory and the Tretyakov Gallery, as well as a trip to the Lenin Hills, Borodino, Vyazma, Bogorodetskoe Field, the town of Gagarin – previously known Gzhatsk, but re-named in 1968 in honour of Yuri Gagarin, who was born right next door in the village of Klushino - and even a brief course on the history of Russia from a professor of history. Our cultural programme also included a visit to the Bolshoy Theatre, the opera Yevgeniy Onegin and a concert by the Moiseev ensemble, which the Cubans absolutely adored.



Although it was difficult for our guests after such a long flight, with the jet lag and change in climate, they stoically persevered with the full working schedule and took part in all the meetings and events with a lot of interest and enthusiasm. We arranged quite a heavy working programme, with several official visits and meetings, including Oleg Rozhnov, the Deputy Minister of Sport, Tourism and Youth Policy, Gennadiy Zyuganov, the head of the Central Committee of the Communist party of Russia, Anatoliy Starodubtsev, a member of the International Affairs Committee (who works, amongst other things, on cooperation with Cuba), Vladimir Zhidkikh, the Chairman of the Youth Affairs and Tourism Commission of the Federation Council, the management of the Federal Agency for Tourism and, of course, members of our own Committee. Incidentally, as well as taking a tour of the Duma, the Cubans also managed to attend a plenary session, where they were welcomed by Duma Chairman Boris Gryzlov. They also took part in a meeting of the Youth Affairs Committee and had lunch in the Duma canteen.



Unfortunately, due to my busy timetable and the festival preparations, I didn’t get to spend all that much time with our guests, but still we managed to have a good chat about lots of things. Amongst other things, I was impressed by how much they love their country, how strongly they believe in their future, that things are changing for the better, in the economic reforms that are now taking place and should lead Cuba out of crisis. Incidentally, nowadays in Cuba women and young people are being very actively encouraged to take part in national affairs, including politics. But they haven’t forgotten about the older generation either! They have one of the highest levels of life expectancy in the world. And that’s not just due to the climate, but to state-run preventive medical programmes, healthy eating programmes and support for the younger generation.

While the deputies were taking part in all those meetings, discussions and cultural events the little gymnasts were busy training hard, day after day. It turned out that the girls not only had great natural talents, but were also very hard-working – and literally, in the space of just one week, they put together a wonderful performance virtually from scratch. Their trainers and producers couldn’t praise them enough. And you should have seen how much they were admired during the festival itself, not only by the young Cuban deputies, but by all 4,000 spectators! Incidentally, on the day before the Cubans departed we organized a joint boat trip for the little girls and the deputies. And afterwards, we had tea together and discussed our impressions of the festival, of their visit to Russia and their new friends, before wishing them a safe trip home.

Those young Cuban deputies and little gymnasts made a huge impression on me. What I saw in them were young, strong, resolute people who want positive change for their country, who are willing to work towards a result and know what they’re aiming for. And I really hope that they’re like our young people in this respect. Because without the will to achieve things, without aspirations, hard work, willpower and hard work day after day, it’s impossible to change things for the better in our country!