Daughter of Yuri Gagarin, first cosmonaut of the USSR, appointed general director of Moscow Kremlin Museum

On Cosmonautics Day marked on April 12, Elena, daughter of Yuri Gagarin, the first cosmonaut of the USSR, was appointed general director of the Moscow Kremlin museum-reservation. RIA Novosti learned this from the Government Information Department on Thursday evening. Elena Gagarin is a trained historian and specialist in the oriental studies. In the past few years she worked as deputy director of the Pushkin Fine Arts Museum. President Putin of Russia visited Star City on the occasion of Cosmonautics Day. The RIA Novosti correspondent reports that right after his arrival the President placed flowers to the monument to Yuri Gagarin. Taking part in the ceremony was Defence Minister Sergei Ivanov, Vice-Premier Ilya Klebanov, representatives of the leadership of the aerospace industry and pilot-cosmonauts. During his stay in Star City Putin met with Yuri Gagarin's family. A source in the Cosmonaut Training Centre noted in a conversation with the RIA Novosti correspondent that "none of the top-ranking leaders met with the first cosmonaut's family in the past ten years." Vladimir Putin also had a talk with the cosmonauts and veterans of the aerospace industry and congratulated them on the holiday and the 40th anniversary of Yuri Gagarin's flight into space. Vladimir Putin presented the pilot-cosmonaut training centre with one of the five portraits of Yuri Gagarin painted in 1961 after his historic flight.

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