Topic: Dmitry Medvedev

An agreement signed in California by Cisco and Russian officials puts Russia on course to develop its own Silicon Valley in Skolkovo, near Moscow, the San Jose Mercury News reported.

"Simply put, we're all in," Cisco Chief Executive Officer John Chambers told Medvedev regarding what is intended to be a "wide-ranging series of collaborative initiatives."

California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger also was on hand when Cisco demonstrated its video conferencing, business social networking and sports casting technology for the Russian leader.

Cisco will initially pump in $100 million in venture money in Russia. Other facets will include establishing an innovation and venture center in Skolkovo, where Cisco also will put a second global headquarters for its Emerging Technology Group.

Cisco also will put up $175,000 in prize money for winning entrepreneurial teams in Russia.

Medvedev was to tour Apple, Google and Twitter, and speak at Stanford University later in the day.

Medvedev has made high-tech development and research top priorities of his economic agenda and is using his five-day U.S. trip to learn more about the sector, Russian news agency RIA Novosti reported Tuesday.

"There will be a serious program tomorrow: I will inspect the high-tech companies in Silicon Valley. This is very useful for us given our plans for a similar center near Moscow," Medvedev said at a dinner Tuesday in San Francisco with Schwarzenegger.

Russia is building a high-tech research hub in Skolkovo, a Moscow suburb, dubbed Russia's Silicon Valley, RIA Novosti said.

Medvedev said it would benefit Russia and the United States to cooperate in the high-tech arena and that he supports creating a Russian-U.S. working group for that purpose.

"We know you are very interested not only in developing and diversifying the economy but also you are very interested in nuclear disarmament," Schwarzenegger told Medvedev. "I want to tell you how much I appreciate that."

Schwarzenegger and Medvedev also toasted an international partnership to help California's state parks Tuesday, the San Francisco Chronicle reported. Medvedev witnessed Schwarzenegger signing a memorandum of understanding with Russia's Renova Group of Companies that will help preserve California's Fort Ross State Historic Park, a Russian-American settlement dating from the 1800s.

"Russian private investment will help the state," Schwarzenegger said. "It's a great collaboration."

Troops from Britain, France, Poland and the United States marched alongside 10,000 Russian forces while about two dozen world leaders attended the 65th anniversary, the BBC reported Sunday. The parade also featured tanks, ballistic missiles and a fly-over of 127 aircraft.

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev told spectators lessons from World War II "urge us to show solidarity."

"Peace is still fragile and it is our duty to remember that wars do not start in an instant," Medvedev said. "It is only together that we shall be able to counter modern threats."

Victory Day parades involving more than 102,000 service personnel and more than 200,000 veterans were conducted in 36 Russian cities, Russian news agency RIA Novosti reported.

Medvedev said the march on the Red Square "symbolizes our readiness to defend peace, to prevent the revision of the results of the war, to prevent new tragedies."