Italy, Russia promise to maintain format of G-8

Italy and Russia share the idea of maintaining the format of the G-8, Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi said Friday.

Berlusconi spoke after meeting with Russian President Dmitri Medvedv in Milan.

During a news conference held by the two leaders after the meeting, Berlusconi stressed the format has the merit of raising awareness among the leaders of the industrialized countries.

He said it promotes "friendship and cordiality of the productive possibilities of solving important problems even on the phone."

Berlusconi also announced at the news conference that a new minister of Economic Development will be appointed in the next week. The former minister, Claudio Scajola, resigned in May over his involvement in scandal investigations.

Medvedv said both the Russian and the Italian economies are overtaking the economic crisis. He invited Italian companies to take part in plans to modernize the Russian economy, particularly the "high-tech sector."

Source:Xinhua