Russian President Dmitry Medvedev kicked off his video blog earlier this week with a discussion about his upcoming address to the World Policy Conference in Evian.

43 year old Medvedev has been one the Internet since 1996, so it’s only natural he would follow the lead of other world leaders, like Germany’s Chancellor Angela Merkel.  

“Putin is a post-Soviet leader. Medvedev is a post-post Soviet leader,” said Sergei Markov, a member of the pro-government United Russia party. “He is very advanced at using hi-tec technologies. Among G8 leaders he is the most advanced.”

“For him to use the Internet and video is not something extraordinary. It’s normal,” added Markov. “Medvedev is very comfortable with the Internet in the same way that Putin is comfortable when he’s in church. Medvedev is now addressing the advanced part of the elite.”

Here’s a transcript of his post:

DMITRY MEDVEDEV: Hello, dear friends,

This is the first time I have used this method of addressing you through my site, and I want to talk about some of the urgent issues facing the world today. World Policy Conference will take place on October 8 in the French town of Evian. The heads of many European countries will be taking part. I also plan to present my views and ideas on solutions to the global problems we face today.

We all need reliable security guarantees and mutual trust. This is important for each of us, and for the whole world, in order to live and develop.

People in the world want to be confident in a decent future for them and their children, want to work in peace and calm and enjoy the comforts of civilisation. They want to have contact with each other and make their voices heard and understood. I and my fellow politicians therefore have a duty to work in constant contact with each other on finding answers to the most difficult questions.

I have said on many occasions now that the old security system has proven itself to be extremely ineffective. Existing agreements no longer reflect the real situation in the world today, as can be seen by events in Iraq, Kosovo, the Caucasus, Afghanistan and many other regions where conflicts exist.

The international politics problems and the crisis of the world financial system require urgent joint action. It is absolutely evident that the time for new decisions has come. I first spoke about the need for a new treaty on European security in June, when I was in Berlin. Since then I have discussed the need for this document with many leading world political figures, my colleagues. I believe that we now need to take the next step and discuss its concrete details.

This, and the need for joint responses to the global upheavals in the economy, is what I will talk about in Evian.