MOSCOW, July 5. /TASS/. The 2024 Silk Way Rally, which kicks off on Friday, will promote international humanitarian cooperation, strengthen both business and personal contacts, and be a significant event in the sports world, Russian President Vladimir Putin stated.

The Kremlin press office announced earlier in the day that President Putin "sent his greetings to participants, organizers and guests of the 2024 International Silk Way Rally."

"Welcome to the ceremonial start of the 2024 International Silk Way Rally in Tomsk, where many participants have gathered, both professionals and amateur truck, car and motorcycle drivers from Russia and other countries," the statement quoted Putin as saying in his congratulatory message to the 2024 Sil Way Rally participants.

"The pilots will cover thousands of kilometers on an extremely challenging route," Putin continued. "It will be a tough battle for victory against tough and experienced rivals and a survival test for equipment and human character."

"The crews will drive across wide steppes and deserts, on impassable taiga roads and through mountains in Russia and Mongolia," according to the Russian president. "Team spirit, mutual assistance and experience are especially important in these extreme conditions."

"I have no doubt that the 2024 Silk Way Rally will become a major event in the global sports calendar, and that it will promote international humanitarian cooperation and help strengthen business and personal contacts," Russian President Putin added.

Vladimir Chagin, the head of the International Project Silk Way Rally, announced earlier in the month that the route of the 2024 Silk Way rally would stretch along various biomes with participants racing through forests, mountains, steppes and deserts.

The marathon motor racing event started in the Russian Siberian city of Tomsk on July 5 and is set to finish in Mongolia’s Ulan-Bator on July 15. The overall distance of the 2024 Silk Way Rally is 5,243 kilometers (some 3,258 miles).