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.”
"Understand that businesspeople expect me to tell them what we are going to do in the immediate future, and I will do so. But at this point I am speaking about our development strategy. We have always behaved honestly with regard to our partners. I would like to say for everyone to hear: we will not change our strategy. Any other approach would run counter to the logic of our strategic course for rebuilding our economy and - this is also very important - would undermine Russia's reputation as a reliable partner."
"I can tell you that the moratorium on the increase of unprocessed lumber prices will be extended into next year, 2010. I believe a similar decision can be taken for 2011. But we will make a decision based on our analysis of the situation on world markets. We hope that our foreign partners will use the additional breathing space judiciously - incidentally, this applies not only to foreign partners, but to our own logging industry as well - in order to expedite the implementation of their development projects and not appeal to the Russian Government to extend the moratorium year in and year out."
"The new Russian Forestry Code, which came into force in 2007, has set transparent, market-oriented rules for the industry. They are based on environmental responsibility, equal access to resources, and incentives for those who invest in advanced timber processing. Such investors will receive tracts of forested land without auction. We have simultaneously decided to phase in higher export duties for unprocessed lumber. I would like to stress that this is by no means an attempt to weaken the position of our competitors. It is a very natural and long overdue step towards a more modern and diversified economy. I am confident that such steps open up new opportunities both for us and for our traditional partners. To be fair, one cannot but notice that we have given our foreign colleagues an excellent opportunity to expand their business. In effect, we have given them direct access to the Russian market and sent them a signal: come and build your facilities, create jobs, and work."
"We do not believe that the current problems are reason enough for giving up our plans for modernisation altogether, or for abandoning our commitment to scaling down the export of raw timber. I am speaking about our development strategy."
"Germany is Russia’s leading trade and economic partner. Last year, Russia-Germany trade exceeded $60 billion. This year it will be considerably smaller because of the crisis. However, I was pleased and even surprised to learn that in January through April German investment in the Russian economy grew 36%. It is proof that our relations have been growing despite problems in the global economy and our countries' economies. Moreover, import and export between Russia and Germany is balanced, and our relations are sufficiently diversified."
"The regions formerly complained there were no federal regulatory system or established programmes and methods for such reforms. Such complaints were justified, but we cannot accept them any longer, now that all the appropriate programmes have been worked out and tested in pilot projects as part of the national priority projects."
"Now is the time to be thrifty, improve the performance of agencies funded by the government, implement new ways of financing, and remove administrative obstacles. It is the time to learn to develop on the basis of domestic resources and potential, and to implement cutting-edge technologies. You can rely on federal support for all of this-provided regions fulfil their basic social obligations toward citizens."
Ours is a socially oriented budget. It stipulates requisite allocations for the payment of benefits, pensions and wages. We are carrying out a large-scale pension reform - we have discussed this more than once and you know the main parameters of that reform. We must do everything possible to ensure the unconditional implementation of these commitments. On the other hand, the budget is also aimed at development, and so allocations to high technologies have been reaffirmed and, in some cases, increased, in particular allocations to the aerospace sector, shipbuilding and other high-tech sectors.
"A majority of the Russian regions made significant progress last year-life expectancy and birth rates grew, while death rates decreased, especially among people of working age. A majority of regional leaders managed to deal with the unfortunate situation. Timely steps prevented snowballing unemployment, and regional employment services promptly concentrated on stabilising the labour market."
"The Russian car market has a bright future, especially when the crisis ends. I am confident that post-crisis growth will be considerable, and there are objective data showing that the Russian car market is the largest in Europe. Several years ago we decided to launch large-scale cooperation with our foreign partners in the auto industry. And today the bulk of the world's leading automakers have plants here, which we regard as an inalienable part of the Russian automotive industry. Specifically, the anti-crisis measures currently being implemented in Russia include these plants. We will provide all-round assistance to the traditional automakers. They have a large part to play in the Russian economy, as they ensure employment in dozens of cities and entire regions, and I am confident that they can deal with the current problems, modernise production, and roll out competitive products and cars that will be in demand."
"It is our duty now to formulate a comprehensive policy for controlling customs tariff regulation suited to our post-crisis objectives. First of all, we should make our manufacturers more competitive. They should find it profitable to borrow foreign cutting-edge technologies, purchase the latest equipment, and thus promote the modernisation of Russian industry. Russian high-tech exports need comprehensive support. Our customs tariff policy should not be an obstacle to competition on domestic markets, and thus generate monopolies. We will closely coordinate our action with our partners in the emergent Customs Union of Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan."
"As for export duties on unprocessed lumber, we take our producers' and their foreign partners' problems into account. So we have postponed the planned increase in export duties to a prohibitive 50 euros per 1 cubic metre. We will announce our final decision quite soon. As for next year, we will proceed from the current situation."
"The timber industry requires greater support in these hard times. We have done something for it already. In particular, we are subsidising interest rates on loans to businesses and lumber exporters. Allocations for purchasing new equipment are being made through Rosagroleasing. Many plants are on the Government list of essential companies, which entitles them to government guarantees."
"I deem it necessary for the Russian Government to explicitly define its position on the use of forest resources, the development of the timber processing industry, and the basic principles of cooperation with our foreign partners. Obviously, we cannot be content with just supplying raw timber and with the current state of the industry… We have chosen to modernise the industry, establish new high-tech plants, create new jobs and come to the international market with competitive finished products. We should also work more to conserve our natural resources."
"We have several issues to discuss with you. Brunei is one of the largest producers of liquefied natural gas, and Russia is also beginning to develop this commodity. We are also aware of your efforts to diversify the country's economy by developing high-tech industry and farming."
"I would like to say at the beginning of our meeting today that the Russian Government and the Central Bank of Russia maintained the stability of the country's banking system amid the global financial downturn and protected the national currency from dramatic fluctuations that can be so painful for people and for companies."
"I would like to remind you that a law affecting local government took effect on January 1. This law holds mayors personally responsible for providing quality services to people. <...> I believe that federal ministries must provide assistance to local governments on this issue, assume responsibility for coordinating our efforts and making them more methodical, and ensure close cooperation with education institutions that train personnel for municipal authorities. I would like to ask that we pay special attention to training local government employees in towns that rely on a single industry, where the effectiveness of municipal authorities' performance is especially critical, and where competent and well-educated people are needed to deal to apply fresh approaches to new challenges. We all understand that it is especially relevant today, during the crisis."
“We have decided to officially submit our application to host the 2018 World Cup. We wanted to inform you about this today. A week ago, on October 9, I signed an executive order making our application official.”
"The scope, essence and timeframe for administrative procedures must be clearly outlined, and the principles for setting prices for government services must be established. It is necessary to continue to foster administrative reform, abolish the state's unnecessary powers, minimise the number of inspections, and switch from the practice of giving authorisation to providing recommendations."
