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.”
"I would like to say again that we realise that although relations between the Russian and Georgian governments are at an all time low, such that has never been in history, relations between the two peoples have a different character. The relations between Georgians and Russians have a solid foundation developed over centuries. We are connected by thousands of invisible ties, including mutual interests and a common history."
"Seven hundred thousand Georgians fought in the Great Patriotic War, a third of whom perished. Our sacred duty is to pay them the respect they deserve and preserve the memory of the heroes of the Great Patriotic War."
"I know that we in this country have always held an absolutely unanimous consensus on everything related to the remembrance of the victims of World War II and support for war veterans. It is United Russia that put forward this proposal [to restore the demolished monument], but I have confidence that other Russian political forces will also rally around this initiative. I wish the Georgian society would also be positive about it."
"We are trying to consolidate the required assets. Today I signed another executive order, this time allocating 6.5 billion roubles to increase Oboronprom's charter capital so that it can acquire controlling interests in the assets of our leading companies, which in this case means companies in the helicopter and motor industries. Another 2.5 billion roubles have been allocated for them for the same purpose next year. I am referring to the companies in Ufa, Lyubertsy and St Petersburg."
"The 50th anniversary of Yuri Gagarin's space flight is an opportunity to once again persuasively remind the global community of the key role that Russia plays in space exploration and of the significance of Russia's space programme for all of humanity. Therefore, I consider it necessary to engage Russian media resources to the fullest, including press publications, the Internet, television. And, of course, we need to once again attentively analyse the quality of textbooks used in our schools."
"We should pay particular attention to the educational aspects. Space research is one of the most high-tech, science-intensive sectors. And a large-scale celebration of Yuri Gagarin's space flight will not only draw attention to space-related subjects, but will generally increase the prestige of science and innovation, and demonstrate the importance and prospects for development in these areas, which is particularly important for young people."
"We should remember their exploits and pass on this pride and legacy to future generations. Therefore, I consider it our collective duty to celebrate this anniversary properly, which we should also do for the Year of Space Exploration, which will be held in Russia in 2011."
"A new federal target programme has been proposed for modernizing housing and municipal services. Currently, our main policy tools in this sector are the Fund's programmes for rebuilding housing and municipal services, which have proved to be most effective and in demand. As I have already said publicly, the fund was established by selling assets previously owned by the Yukos Company. We use resources from the Fund to resettle residents living in hazardous housing and repair dilapidated housing. However, the fund was only established to operate on a temporary basis - until 2012. In addition, the scale of problems in this area is so great that they require additional resources. Along with major renovations of blocks of flats, serious efforts are also needed to refurbish local municipal utilities networks, introduce resource-saving technologies and improve the quality of municipal services. These all are priorities of the aforementioned target program."
"Next year we will launch a federal programme for the Republic of Ingushetia. We are trying to solve the most pressing problems for this Russian region, which entails the construction of new hospitals, kindergartens, school, technical schools, a theatre and a sports complex, as well as providing cities and towns with the sufficient water supply and rebuilding the local infrastructure. Certainly, these are not tasks that cannot be solved in one year. Yet I am confident that we will achieve positive and considerable results together with the republic's administration. Step by step, we will create the conditions in Ingushetia for people to work and have a good life, bringing the region up to par with Russia's other regions. The total amount of funding for the program is 32.2 billion roubles, including 29 billion from the federal budget."
"I would like to talk about our plans for developing federal roads. This clearly requires increasing the amount of construction and modernizing the road network already in use. To achieve this, we have to attract business investment in addition to government funding and make use of concessions and other mechanisms for private public partnership. The state company Rosavtodor, which has been established to meet the aforementioned challenges, will begin operations in 2010. Today we have to approve the company's 6-year period programme."
"That is why we are going to amend fire safety regulations and make changes in the Criminal Code and the Administrative Offences Code. I am confident this will help stop those who literally play with fire trying to make some easy money."
"We should develop long-term re-equipment programmes and adjust them to the objectives of the Armed Forces. And within these programmes, the defence industry should approve plans for modernisation, technological development, research and design, and the serial production of military equipment for the Armed Forces."
"We have held several meetings to discuss the situation in the defence industry lately. We will continue to work on this issue. But it is clear for now that we should not only increase funding. Funding is, of course, very important, but it cannot not solve all the problems. We must significantly increase the quality of the hardware we produce, improve production chains and provide personnel for the defence industry."
"Today we will discuss 2010 defence spending, which has reached more than 1.17 trillion roubles, 8% more than in 2009. Defence spending has been increased considerably to support defence companies and related industries. But the most important thing is to accomplish our strategic objective: reforming the Russian Army and the Navy, improving their combat readiness and mobility."
"$35 billion in foreign direct investment has been channelled into the Russian economy from January through September 2009. This is a good result given the global financial and economic crisis."
"I would like to start with the application of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development to invest 4.6 billion roubles (approximately $150 million) in a private Russian commercial bank. This is a good example of interaction between private Russian businesses and a leading international financial institution. Investments in banking are especially important during the ongoing global financial crisis. I am pleased that the value of our banks is increased not only through long-term state allocations but also through private investment and with funds provided by international financial institutions."
"Enterprises in the housing and utilities sector must react promptly to these macroeconomic conditions because funding shortages will continue to increase, and the degradation of the utilities network will become unacceptable. Naturally, no one has the right to speculate and misuse these macroeconomic indices in this sensitive public sphere and to unjustifiably inflate the costs of these services. Unfortunately, this does happen sometimes. The federal government is trying to limit the rise in these costs, the utilities tariffs, and will continue to monitor this process".
“One more priority is to upgrade domestically sourced production. There is nothing fundamentally wrong with our shipbuilders using foreign technology and components. But we realize full well that in perspective we must develop a modern domestic industry to develop components, which would allow us to fill orders for related industries.”
“We must make similar breakthroughs in military shipbuilding. It is absolutely necessary to develop a long-term programme as soon as possible. It should meet the Navy's requirements and include current objectives based on 30-year forecasts. This is our minimum programme. a meeting on providing the Navy with new weapons and military hardware at the Admiralty Shipyards.”
"We often say that the Russian Armed Forces must become more compact, mobile and combat-effective and that the proportion of modern hardware in the equipment mix should be brought to 70% by 2020. This fully applies to the Navy, whose provision with new equipment we will discuss today."
“A draft law has been prepared to oblige thermal power stations to create fuel stocks in advance to ensure proper operation in autumn and winter. We touched on this issue early this year and even at the end of last year, if I'm not mistaken. We are introducing the mandatory inspection of facilities such as power stations, transmission lines and heating lines to verify their readiness for the cold season. Such work is being carried out now, but a targeted law will make it systemic, defining the obligations and responsibilities of the state and businesses in ensuring a reliable supply of heat and electricity to consumers.”
“I suggest we look at this issue from a broader perspective, considering conceptual approaches to tariff regulations. We must seek understandable and transparent tariff prescription policies to make tariff rates economically justified and not burdensome for the people and the economy. In addition, all bills must be based entirely on meter readings so that people will not have to pay for something they don't consume. Naturally, tariff policy must ensure investment attractiveness of the industry's infrastructure, promoting increased service reliability and quality, energy conservation and the application of the most efficient technological solutions.”
“The centralised website of government and municipal services was launched on December 15. It contains information about major services whose list was endorsed by the government, as well as a number of other services for individuals and companies. It is necessary to continue implementing our plan to switch to the provision of electronic services in the near future. Each department has a rigid schedule which should be observed without fail.”
“I have endorsed a list of products which should be bought for federal needs exclusively at electronic tenders. The list includes 23 items: food products, printing materials, office furniture, cars, and others. This is an anti-corruption measure because the use of the Internet excludes personal contacts between government officials and the suppliers of goods when an order is placed. Moreover, such auctions save considerable budget funds, as the practice bears out.”
"Along with the restoration of monuments of historic and architectural interest, the Institute of the National Languages and Culture of the Finno-Ugric Peoples will be established at the University of Mordovia in Saransk. This institute is intended to become the centre of Finno-Ugric research and educational projects."
“Our strategic objective is to create the conditions in Russia, in particular in the Republic of Mordovia, that will allow the Finno-Ugric languages and culture to flourish, their rich legacy to be studied, and their friendly contacts with related ethnicities in other countries to be expanded.”
“Indeed, if Russia and the North Atlantic Alliance pool our efforts in areas of common interest, we can achieve good results. This applies to combating international terrorism, controlling the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and delivery vehicles for these weapons, and fighting organized crime and illegal drug trafficking.”
“Our cooperation also looks promising in the banking and financial sectors, high technology, communications and telecommunications. The joint venture GTel Mobile, which includes Russian VympelKom, is a successful mobile phone operator. And yesterday a Vietnamese-Russian bank opened a subsidiary in Moscow. We have also done well in mechanical engineering. The KamAZ Truck Plant is a leader here and continues to be active in the Vietnamese market despite tough competition. It has already produced more than 1,500 trucks in Vietnam.”
“Today Rosatom (The State Atomic Energy Corporation) and Inter RAO UES signed a memorandum of understanding with their Vietnamese friends. In future this agreement will allow them to develop full-scale relations in such a promising area as the civilian nuclear industry. We are ready to help our Vietnamese partners in implementing their national programme for the development of the nuclear power industry until 2020."
“We have amassed a wealth of experience in the energy industry. Our joint venture Vietsovpetro is one of the world's leading oil and gas companies in output and, importantly, financial viability. We are successfully developing our relations in the electrical power industry. In the 1970s and 1980s this country helped Vietnam build thermal and hydroelectric power stations with an overall capacity of more than 4,000 megawatts. It would be no exaggeration to say that these power stations now form the backbone of Vietnam's electrical power industry. Nowadays Russian companies such as Silovye Mashiny are building new electricity generating facilities in Vietnam.”
“Today we are living through the world financial and economic crisis, but for all that our trade and economic turnover has increased in the nine months of this year over last year. Vietnam is carrying out 60 projects with the participation of Russian companies. Prime Minister Vladimir Putin held talks with his Vietnamese counterpart Nguyen Tan Dung.”
“Relations between Russia and Vietnam are of an exceptionally special character. Both countries are treating their relations with particular attention and special warmth. The opening of the Kamran memorial as a tribute to our former military brotherhood is the recent evidence of this”.
“Over the past several years, relations between our two countries have been developing very positively. In four years we have, I believe, tripled our trade turnover, which reached two billion dollars last year. Naturally, the volume of trade decreased somewhat due to the global economic downturn. But I am convinced that this is a temporary setback, and that the levels will rebound”.
“The Customs Union is becoming the driver of the Eurasian Economic Community. We expect the rest of our EurAsEC partners to join this policy in the future. The launch of the Customs Union is a major step on the path to a common economic space with unrestricted goods, services, capital and workforce flow. It is a distinctly higher level of integration. A total of 170 million people represent a big consumer market which will open new vistas for businesses and producers from our countries and increase investment attractiveness.”
“The main objective is to create common mechanisms that will eliminate internal barriers on our customs territory and which will make it possible to control the Customs Union's external perimeter. We must prevent the creation of grey zones in the customs regulation. At the same time, we must not create additional obstacles for economic distribution.”
“Moreover, we have signed an agreement on the Customs Union's Customs Code. The agreement must be prepared for ratification as soon as possible. In the short-term, we must prioritise the creation of a common customs territory by July 1, 2010.”
“In the past six months, representatives of our departments and the ministries of Russia, Kazakhstan and Belarus have put a lot of energy into highly successful attempts to draft the Customs Union's legal framework. We have accomplished practical results, drafting a package of key documents and decisions needed to launch the Customs Union. First, this implies the approval of a common customs tariff and the introduction of a common system of non-tariff regulation starting January 1, 2010 and the granting of authority to the Customs Union Commission”.
“More incentives should be given to people to start their own business. This year new businessmen are being paid a lump sum grant of 58,800 roubles. Incidentally, many have taken advantage of this measure, even though it is a bureaucratic and time consuming process. But still there have been those who benefitted from this opportunity.”
“Additional support measures are stipulated for school graduates, people with disabilities. A job created for a disabled person entitles the employer to a subsidy of 30,000 roubles. College and university graduates will be afforded extended training periods at factories and plants with pay, enabling them to gain practical experience.”
“In 2009, we have generally managed to free up the jobs market. Our efforts had a positive impact after all, though not in every area. Regional programmes involved almost 2,200,000 people, who were facing joblessness because of the crisis or sackings. People were given real help when they most needed it. Of course, we are aware that many people are questioning the quality of these jobs, and rightly so. But, again, this was a makeshift decision, taken at the time of a sharp economic crisis. In this context, we decided to carry on with our anti-crisis measures and support the jobs market in 2010. We are allocating 36.3 billion roubles for these purposes.”
"We should consider security. The programme [a Russian Railways investment programme for 2010] provides 450 million roubles for counterterror measures and 426.5 million roubles for fire prevention. Traffic safety will claim another 2.5 billion roubles. I think this proportion should be kept. At any rate, we must plan for such expenses today."
“As the military transitions to its new, modern structure, it needs to be divested of its so-called non-core assets, or in the case of the Armed Forces, its non-core activities. Accordingly, it is necessary to develop a system for maintaining armour and automotive equipment at the manufacturer's plants. Maintaining separate auto services and tank repair plants is an unjustified and inexcusable extravagance in today's conditions. What is more, experts from the plants where the hardware is produced are better qualified to do this work. And they will receive additional funding.”
“The development of such modern and robust hardware directly depends on the unity and clarity of scientific and technical policies. Therefore, as soon as possible we need to consolidate the results of scientific research and design work, identify the most promising solutions and come up with a unified plan for future design work. I mean engines, weapons, ammunition, observation and aiming devices, as well as automated control systems.”
“The main goal of the defence industry is to supply our own military. Today we need to look to the future and keep in mind that science and technology for defence needs are developing at a rapid pace all over the world. And in the modern world, tanks and other armour, as before, remain one of the main components of any military. The manoeuvrability of forces is achieved primarily by reliable military vehicles.
“Quite recently we decided to contribute 4.4 billion roubles to the company's registered capital so that it could reach settlements with suppliers and solve other problems. The money has been received. Early next year, Uralvagonzavod will receive 10 billion roubles in the first quarter, also for its registered capital. This is direct aid to the company for its financial recovery and servicing its debt, which is being acquired so that the company can be modernised, even in these difficult conditions.”
“In addition, the report on the performance of regional and municipal agencies will include the figures on fire safety, especially in sensitive or crowded areas.”
“Regarding material support, the Russian Government will send the families of the deceased 400,000 roubles each and the Perm Territory will provide 100,000 roubles. Consequently, the total value of the support will be half a million roubles. Victims will receive 300,000 roubles out of the federal budget, plus another 100,000 out of the territory's budget. Consequently, a total of 400,000 roubles. Money can help solve many things, but not everything. In this case, far from everything. Therefore, I want to draw attention to the fact that the most important thing right now is consideration for people. We need to provide them with moral support. We need to help the families of the deceased. Let us make do with all formalities and, I repeat, provide them with moral support.”
“The energy efficiency of the budget sector, natural/infrastructure monopolies, and large companies with state capital is another important objective. I have said more than once that the government must start with itself in terms of energy savings. The consumption of fuel and energy in the budget sector must be cut by at least 15% within five years. The policy of energy savings implies not only bans and restrictions, but also measures encouraging the rational and responsible use of resources.”
“We must seriously consider energy efficiency for the design and maintenance of residential blocks, social facilities, and office and industrial premises. Of course, it is impossible to ensure radical improvements overnight, and the programme will be very expensive, as everyone knows. Still, all new construction projects, reconstruction and capital repairs of buildings must proceed with due attention to energy efficiency.”
