OREANDA-NEWS. March 13, 2009. Vladimir Putin sent a telegram wishing a happy 96th birthday to Sergei Mikhalkov, Chairman of the Executive Committee of the International Community of Writers' Unions
The telegram said:

"Your long career is marked by outstanding achievements and creative victories. Your multi-faceted talent and active position in life have enabled you to contribute a unique page to the history of modern Russian culture and to win the hearts and minds of the reading public. Through your inexhaustible energy and dedication, you still take an active part in present-day literary and public life."