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
Prime Minister Vladimir Putin met with German businessmen yesterday after opening a Volkswagen factory in Kaluga the day before. He warmly thanked the German partners for their commitment to cooperating with Russia and in turn, the Germans promised not only to provide investments, but also to contribute to the formation of a middle class in Russia.
As this paper reported, Vladimir Putin launched a total cycle assembly of cars at the Volkswagen plant just outside Kaluga last Tuesday. Later in the evening, he chaired a meeting on regional development (which started after this paper had already gone to press), where he made some very important and harsh statements.
German companies are set to take part in the second wave of privatisation in Russia, the Chairman of the Eastern Committee on Eastern European Economic Relations, Klaus Mangold, said during Vladimir Putin's meeting with German businessmen yesterday: "We believe that the privatisation programme the government announced several weeks ago in Russia provides new opportunities to promote cooperation between Russia and Germany."
The new system of appointing regional governors is unexpectedly turning into a semblance of electoral race. The contenders for governor whose names have been submitted for approval to the Kremlin aren’t fighting for votes, but rather for the good will of regional and federal elites. And at times the battle lines are drawn within the same party.
World War II veterans may not receive the flats promised by President Medvedev in time for the 65the Victory Anniversary. Yesterday Prime Minister Vladimir Putin promised to remove some of the barriers preventing war veterans from getting new housing. However, the money allocated by the government falls short of the real cost of the flats, and many veterans will not be able to move into the new flats before Victory Day on May 9. 34,000 World War II veterans are currently in need of new housing. However, Russia has failed to provide each with even just a one-room flat by 2010.
Residents living in Aprelevka’s buildings have been battling for operational lifts for ten years.
Prime Minister Vladimir Putin visited the Volkswagen automobile plant in Kaluga yesterday, where he told our special correspondent, Andrei Kolesnikov, that he was pleased with the products of this thriving auto giant in Russia—at least more pleased than with the products of AvtoVAZ, which has become a black hole for billions from the Russian budget. Indeed, as if to challenge the ambitions AvtoVAZ still seems to entertain, the plant’s top managers in Kaluga were pointedly hinting that they would soon be assembling Audis, too.
The government has developed a plan to catch up with our northern neighbour in timber processing.
For the first time in the history of the alcohol industry, the state is easing administrative pressure on legal alcohol producers.
The ambitious Nord Stream gas pipeline project has obtained its first construction permit from the Danish Energy Agency for the section of the pipeline to cross Danish waters. The Swiss project operator, Nord Stream AG, announced the news.
