MOSCOW, July 9. /TASS/. Former Russia Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev disclosed that he retained good friendly relations with President Vladimir Putin after his appointment as a Deputy Chairman of the Security Council.

"We still have good friendly relations," Medvedev told Komsomolskaya Pravda. "The president in the country’s number one person. Due to my new responsibilities, I act as [Putin]’s deputy, responsible for the Security Council operation, for security issues. This is why we regularly communicate in various formats, discuss all kinds of security issues, in its narrow sense, as well as economic and social issues," Medvedev said.

He disclosed that he, as the Chairman of the United Russia political party, also talks to Putin "on party issues."

"Especially, when we prepared proposals on support of the economy, social sphere, labor and occupational issues," Medvedev said. "So, everything is okay. Everything’s fine."

On January 15, Medvedev announced his resignation following Putin’s address to the parliament. The next day, Medvedev was appointed as the Deputy Chairman of the Security Council, succeeded by Mikhail Mishustin, former tax service head, as a Prime Minister.

Medvedev served as deputy and first deputy chairman of the presidential administration between 1999 and 2003; he later chaired the administration between 2003 and 2005; between 2005 and 2008, he served as the First Deputy Prime Minister; and in 2008 became the third President of Russia. In 2012, he became a prime minister and occupied it for the longest period in the history of modern Russia.