VLADIMIR PUTIN
ARCHIVE OF THE OFFICIAL SITE
OF THE 2008-2012 PRIME MINISTER
OF THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION
VLADIMIR PUTIN
ARCHIVE OF THE OFFICIAL SITE
OF THE 2008-2012 PRIME MINISTER
OF THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION
VLADIMIR PUTIN
“Support from Russian citizens has always helped us, and I’m confident that the government’s future line-up will rely on the people. We must never forget about the needs of ordinary people. We must always remember how government-level decisions influence the lives of all ordinary Russian citizens.”
“We must eradicate the fundamental causes behind corruption, and we must make sure that every act of corruption is punished. For our part, we will continue to improve the performance of law-enforcement bodies, courts of law, and authorities at all levels. Public and other human rights organisations and the media must react to any instance of corruption or any attempt to abuse one's position or turn a profit at the expense of the people. Your voice and the position of civil society are a crucial component in our common fight against corruption.”
“I believe that the federal government should set up a special agency responsible for ethnic development, inter-ethnic accord and interaction. <…> Rather it should be a collegial body with certain powers to work directly with the president and top government officials. <…>We also expect the traditional religions to be actively involved in these policy consultations.”
“Although very different, each of them – the Russian Orthodox Church, Islam, Buddhism and Judaism – has the same basic and universal underlying moral and spiritual values: compassion, cooperation, truth, justice, respect for elders, the ideals of family and work. These moral targets cannot be replaced, and must be strengthened. I am confident that the government and society should welcome and support the efforts of the different faiths in education, social welfare and in the Armed Forces. At the same time, Russia should remain a secular state.”
“Any individual living in this country should be keenly aware of their faith and ethnicity. But above all they must be citizens of Russia – and be proud of it. No one has the right to place ethnic and religious concerns above state law. The law, however, must take account of ethnic and religious concerns.”
“In 2011 over 1.7 million children were born and the death rate decreased by 5.6%. I’m pleased to say that these figures are the best Russia has seen in the last 19 years. Overall, the population loss also decreased 1.8 times, and the average life expectancy increased one and half years to 70.3 years in 2011 in the Russian Federation. These indices are absolutely comparable with European indices.”
“The infant mortality rate decreased, too. Including immigration, the total Russian population grew by 160,000 to 143 million. <…>I also want to point out that it is necessary to do much more than has recently been done. The demographic problem remains one of the most sensitive problems in Europe and in Russia, in particular. Meanwhile I am glad to note that our efforts have not been in vain. It is necessary to intensify our efforts in this area.”
“We are currently carrying out intensive work in preparation for the 2018 FIFA World Cup. This large-scale project must pool together the efforts of the state, the business community, public organisations and, of course, fans and football supporters. I have no doubt that we will hold this event in a befitting manner, that we will host one of the most outstanding FIFA World Cups in the history of this wonderful sport, in the history of football.”
“I would like to note that football in Russia has always been more than just a sport. It would be no exaggeration to say that this spectacular, exciting and captivating game has become a way of life for many generations of this country's citizens. We are rightly proud of the achievements of our national team, whose achievements include Olympic gold medals and victory at the UEFA European Football Championship. We are proud of our wonderful clubs, who have won numerous continental cups.”
“Russia will host the FIFA World Cup for the first time. I would like to stress once again that we are grateful to FIFA and all the representatives of the world football community for making this choice. As we see it, it is an acknowledgement of this country's achievements in the development of sport and football and an assessment of the new Russia in general as an open and successful country, setting itself the most ambitious goals and capable of holding such large-scale events.”
