Rossiiskaya Gazeta: "Premier.ru"
Pierre Sidibe
Russian Prime Minister to launch own website
Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin will launch his own site to provide web users with information on his activities. The web resource, developed by the Government's press service, will be launched soon as part of the official government website www.government.ru and will receive its own web address in 2008, likely to be premier.gov.ru.
Currently, available information on the Prime Minister is limited to a web page on the governmental website, with scant content including a bio, speech transcripts and several photos.
In 2000 and 2004, the years when presidential elections were held in Russia, two sites were launched during the respective campaigns to promote Putin's candidacy: putin2000.ru and putin2004.ru. These were short-lived projects which were implemented only during the campaigns and provided reports on his activities as Prime Minister and as President.
The current presidential official web site www.kremlin.ru was created to promote Putin as well and started in January 2000, after Putin was appointed acting President replacing Boris Yeltsin. The current version of the site went public in June 20, 2004, a month after Putin's inauguration.
Meanwhile, according to government sources, the new site will not be related to Putin's activities as President but will offer information since becoming Prime Minister on May 8. With Putin's strong political reputation, the idea of launching a website is logical.
The government press service started to develop the project, to correspond with the Prime Minister's status and personality and "approved by Putin," as government sources said, in early July. Both state and private companies participated in developing the web source, its design and contents, as well as security measures against possible hacker attacks.
The site's design and structure varies from the www.kremlin.ru site, with a full archive of Putin's remarks at government presidium sessions and statements made during working trips, as well as various opening speeches and introductory remarks. The site has extensive audio and video sections, as well as a photo-wire. The contents will also include the most interesting articles on Putin, both by Russian and foreign journalists.
Users will be able to follow the Prime Minister's activities by using a special timeline feature, which is expected to become the site's major highlight, while a special interactive map will display the locations both visited and scheduled for visits.
The user-friendly site will offer a few sections, with users being able to find what they are looking for within two or three clicks. Visitors will also be able to email the Prime Minister via the site. An English version will be offered.
Until the project is launched, visitors can find information on the Prime Minister and his activities on the government website, which will be redesigned to keep up with the Prime Minister's site, a government source said. The site will continue to be upgraded after start-up with interactive services, improved performance and a greater variety in content.
