John P. McDonough, Secretary of State     ~     Brian R. Moe, Deputy Secretary of State

Leningrad Region/City of St. Petersburg, Russia
A delegation of municipal leaders spent 1 week in Rockville and Annapolis learning from their Maryland counterparts. ~
Click on photos for full size.
• During their orientation to Annapolis, Delegate Ruslan Alekhin shows (from right to left) host family member Steve Johnson (back to camera) and Prudence Clopp and Maryland-Leningrad Sister State Chair Ardath Cade where in Leningrad Region he lives. The delegation’s facilitator, Stanislav Kahsitysn, looks on.

• While in Annapolis, the group enjoyed its history, walking around the city and visiting the U.S. Naval Academy. From left to right are Eduard Saltykov, Denis Mironov, Stanislav Kashitsyn, Beth Volk (Office of the Secretary of State, International Affairs), Tanya Sher (interpreter), Vladimir Roshkovich, Ruslan Alekhin, and Dmitriy Khorosanov.

• The delegation and host families enjoyed The Occasion of the National Day of the Russian Federation on June 12. The group met and talked with Sergey Kislyak, Ambassador of the Russian Federation to the United Sates at the Russian Embassy in Washington. Standing from left to right are Denis Mironov, Ambassador Kislyak, Vladimir Roshkovich, and Dmitriy Khorosanov.
• The delegation had a spirited discussion with Mayor Ellen Moyer, mayor of the City of Annapolis, about models of city government and the merits of the City Manager position. Later, they posed for a formal picture. (below)
• Mayor Moyer (center) is flanked by (from left to her right) Denis Mironov, Ruslan Alekhin, and Dmitriy Khorosanov, and Eduard Saltykov, Stanislav Kahsitysn, and Vladimir Roshkovich (from her left to right).