ST. PETERSBURG, June 4. /TASS/. The coronavirus pandemic has demonstrated to people that health and human interaction are of supreme value, Russian President Vladimir Putin said at a plenary session of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF-2021) on Friday.
"First of all, the pandemic showed to all of us how vulnerable we all are. Secondly, we realized the role, the significance of science of high technologies and uniting efforts in overcoming common crises. We understood that only by joining efforts can we achieve the results that we need," he said.
"The pandemic, undoubtedly, gave a nudge to the hi-tech and prospective types of production and what is defining and will define progress in the near future, I mean, artificial intelligence, information technologies, and so on. Yet, in my opinion, the most important thing is that we realized what really has the most value. This is health and human interaction," the Russian president emphasized.
Proceeding from the realization of this value, people should build their life "in the near future and with a more remote perspective," Putin noted. "I would like to thank all of you, above all, Qatari Emir [Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani] and Chancellor of the Austrian Republic [Sebastian Kurz] for agreeing to participate in our discussions today, in our event today, to wish you all the best," he said.