SOLNECHNOGORSK /Moscow Region/, September 1. /TASS/. Culture and language are extremely important things that make up the foundation of any society, Russian President Vladimir Putin said during an open lesson titled, "A conversation about what’s most important."

At the beginning of the session, the Russian leader reiterated that earlier today, together with his Kyrgyz counterpart, Sadyr Japarov, he had launched the construction of three schools in Kyrgyzstan that will offer instruction "in all subjects in Russian."

"In this connection, I would like to highlight that Kyrgyzstan is a former republic of the Soviet Union; you know that we used to live in a single, unified country, but everything is forgotten quickly and all things drift apart all too rapidly, with the exception of one thing - culture. Yet, it also must be maintained and upheld. Culture and language are an extremely important thing that lies at the heart of any society," the Russian leader emphasized.

He pointed out that interest in the Russian language in Kyrgyzstan "is an extremely important thing that without question should be cherished." Speaking about the creation of a network of Russian-language schools in the Central Asian country, Putin said: "This, undoubtedly, helps to maintain all the very best things that were achieved when the former republics of the Soviet Union existed [together] within a common state structure."

Commenting on the opening of new schools in Russian regions, the head of state noted: "We are advancing with great confidence along the track of organizing a new educational space, fine-tuning it, which is encouraging."

Addressing the participants of the open lesson, Putin congratulated them, as well as all schoolchildren, students, instructors and their family members, on the beginning of the new academic year. "I would like to wish all of you success in the new academic year," Putin concluded.