International events: Cross Year Russia – Netherlands to open with the exhibition devoted to Peter I

For further development of Russian-Dutch relations, 2013 will be the Year of the Russian Federation in the Kingdom of the Netherlands and the Year of the Netherlands Year in Russia.

Chairman of the Russian part of the Organizing Committee is the Deputy Prime Minister, Arkady Dvorkovich.

The cross Year Russia-Netherlands will open in February 2013 with a large-scale exhibition devoted to Peter I, which will be held in the "Hermitage on the Amstel" – the branch of the State Hermitage Museum in Amsterdam.

The order on holding the cross Year Russia - Netherlands was signed by the President of Russia, Vladimir Putin in September 2012. The Russian government is mandated to provide the necessary assistance to the work of the organizing committee and the timely funding of the Year’s events.

A special website has been created to cover the events of the Russian-Dutch cooperation.

As part of the cross year, the two countries are going to emphasize the existing between long-term and multi-faceted co-operation, and to develop innovative partnership in the present and in the future. Program of the Year of Holland in Russia is focused on three main themes: "Economy", "Culture", "State and Society."

Relations between Russia and the Netherlands have a rich long-century history. In recent decades, the relationship between the two countries continued to grow and expand - not only at the level of governments, but also between representatives of business, culture, education, science and non-governmental organizations.