Alexander Goncharuk, the first deputy chairman of the AFK Sistema Board of Directors:
"No, I was too busy, but I'll listen to the rerun this evening. Usually, important things are said at such rostrums. Listening to the news, I recently learned about Putin's statement that Russia will only impose WTO restrictions when it becomes a full-fledged member. I need to listen to Putin's speech – maybe he made some programme statements."
Boris Nemtsov, the co-chairman of the Popular Freedom Party:
"I had more important things to attend to. This is a standard annual routine as opposed to a discussion about urgent issues because their parliament is not a venue for debates. I'm sure Putin spoke about the need to counter corruption and the audience nodded in understanding. It was the kind of fight you see between bees and honey."
Viktor Dostov, the chairman of the Electronic Money Association Board:
"I read Putin's speech on the Internet. I didn't expect to find answers to professional questions, such as what will happen with electronic money, but I wanted to understand what course the country is going to take. This is what the prime minister talked about."
Alexander Murychev, the executive vice president of the Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs:
"I heard the main part. There's no doubt this is a programme report. Putin spoke in detail about social issues and the budget and largely explained the government's programme on key topics, which makes his report tantamount to an election programme. The prime minister replied to many questions from the business community -- in particular by announcing a reduction in the Uniform Social Tax, a move that is welcomed by many people."
Olga Uskova, the president of Cognitive Technologies and the National Association of Innovations and Development of Information Technology:
"To be honest, I didn't. I think this is a usual protocol event that can hardly contain something new or interesting. And this is what it turned out to be."
Nikolai Gavrilov, the chairman of Roseksimbank's Board of Directors:
"Generally, I prefer to see the prime minister's informal communication and trips, but programme speeches are important and I looked at his report on the Web. I need to know the government's strategic plans, and its assessment of economic development prospects and industry support plans."
Kirill Kabanov, the chairman of the National Anti-Corruption Committee:
"I saw it in full. I think Putin didn't mention the main thing in his report – he didn't admit failures in running the country whereas society expects the government to seriously work on its mistakes. Speaking about corruption, the prime minister didn't offer any specific answers." и Развития Информационных технологий