Footballer Diniyar Bilyaletdinov: "We love our country and respect every people"

The unity of the peoples of Russia is born from love for one’s country and respect for the language, culture and values of every people. Footballer Diniyar Bilyaletdinov shared this understanding of unity at the National Centre RUSSIA after visiting the "Journey Across Russia" exposition.

"We all live in one country, love our country, respect every people we have here, and respect their language, traditions and values. It seems to me that, historically, this 'fusion' of cultures and characters has taken shape in our country. And this is precisely one of our strengths and values: for each person individually and for society as a whole," Diniyar Bilyaletdinov noted.

According to the footballer, travelling around the country helps him feel the unity of its peoples: "I travel a lot around Russia, to different cities and regions, and everywhere I try to see, feel and understand something. Every place has its own face, its own character, but at the same time, you still feel that this is one country. I still need to get a little further to the Far East — I have not yet fully discovered that region for myself. But I already know the rest of Russia quite well, and this only strengthens my confidence in how different we all are and, at the same time, how united we are."

The President of the Russian Federation, Vladimir Putin, announced the opening of the Year of Unity of the Peoples of Russia at the National Centre RUSSIA during the "Russia — A Family of Families" marathon. The large-scale event brought together more than four thousand people, including representatives of more than 190 peoples of Russia, schoolchildren, students and foreign guests.