Putin Congratulates Zeman on Reelection as Czech President

"Russian President Vladimir Putin sent a greetings telegram to Milos Zeman on his reelection as the president of the Czech Republic," the press service said.

According to Putin, the election results have confirmed the high authority of Zeman as an "experienced and responsible politician, who turns into reality the interests and aspirations of the Czech people."

Earlier in the day, the Czech Republic held the second round of its presidential election. Zeman gained 51.36 percent of votes after 100 percent percent of votes have been counted as 2.85 million supported him. Jiri Drahos, the former head of the Czech Academy of Sciences and the main rival of Zeman, received 48.63 percent of votes as 2.7 million people voted for him. A total of 66.6 percent out of 8.5 million registered voters took part in the election.

Russia highly appreciates the principal position of Zeman in favour of development of friendly Russian-Czech relations and mutually beneficial cooperation in various fields, Putin said.

The Russian president also confirmed his readiness to "continue constructive joint work on issues of bilateral and international agenda, and also wished Milos Zeman health, prosperity and new successes in state activities."