Vladimir Putin meets with Andrei Nelidov, president of the Republic of Karelia

During the meeting, Prime Minister Putin noted several positive trends in the republic, in particular a significant rise in investment and a growing budget surplus. In clarifying his regional government’s primary objectives, Mr Nelidov said that the top priority is to improve tax collection. He also informed the prime minister that, as of January 12, regular air travel had begun between Moscow and the regional city of Petrozavodsk.

Transcript of the beginning of the meeting:

Vladimir Putin: Mr Nelidov, I have pored over last year's figures for your republic. Things are picking up gradually, but still, the figures are fairly meagre. The only strong positive trend that attracted my attention was a significant rise in investment in Karelia-based companies, which primarily goes toward large-scale projects, such as the new bleached pulp facility at the Segezha pulp and paper mill and a concrete slab facility. Also, there are several good projects in electric power and agriculture.

Andrei Nelidov: This year we also plan to put a berry processing plant into operation with a daily capacity of 44 tonnes. The facility, which produces natural berry juice, will be the only one of its kind in Russia.

Vladimir Putin: And I see that the investment is fairly substantial – over half a billion roubles...

The federal and regional governments will also provide funds to build and repair several sections of the motorway connecting St Petersburg and Petrozavodsk, specifically the sections in the Priozersk and Sortavala area. The investment amounts to almost 1.8 billion...

Andrei Nelidov: And the motorway around Ladoga will soon round off the project.

Vladimir Putin: Yes.

Andrei Nelidov: It will be a fine motorway.

Vladimir Putin: The restoration and lighting of the Kola motorway will require an additional 455 million roubles, and the reconstruction of the Kizhi open-air museum another 400 million. What has been accomplished thus far? How was the start of the new year? What results do you expect?

Andrei Nelidov: First of all, I'd like to report that I have fulfilled the task you set for me when you offered me the position of president of Karelia: namely, to improve the transport infrastructure connecting the republic with other regions. Yesterday, we began daily flights to and from Moscow, regularising air travel between our two capitals. The flight lasts 70 minutes, and a one-way ticket costs 3,500 roubles.

I believe that these are basic conditions necessary for encouraging business and attracting more investment to the republic. Businesspeople now have no difficulty travelling to Petrozavodsk from Moscow and vice versa. This is also important for bolstering tourism in the republic, which is one of our priorities. Karelia is a gem of northwestern Russia, but few people will explore it if the region is too difficult to access.

As far as other challenges go, in my first six months as president of Karelia, it took some time to settle down to the new job; at the time, the republic faced a very pressing budget deficit. That problem has now been resolved.

Vladimir Putin: Yes, your budget is in surplus, according to the Ministry of Finance.

Andrei Nelidov: That's correct. We have received much support from the office of Presidential Envoy to the Northwestern Federal District Ilya Klebanov, without whom we would have been unable to overcome the crisis. The situation was dire.

Next year's budget is much more promising than the previous one. We have a clear set of priorities. Naturally, there are several challenges, such as funding for road construction. Karelia has a vast territory and very few federal highways. Another problem is the construction of bridges. We can afford to build one large-scale bridge, but it's not enough for the republic.

We can plan ahead, however, based on the amount of investment we receive. Clearly, it should be increased. The most promising investment area is transport infrastructure – roads, airports and federal transport programmes.

I'm sure all these issues can be resolved. There are no dead ends. We simply want to accomplish our goals faster and change regional life for the better – and we do our best.

Vladimir Putin: What are your priorities for the first half of the year?

Andrei Nelidov: For the first half of 2011?

Vladimir Putin: Yes, this year.

Andrei Nelidov: The main thing is to...

 

more to be posted soon...

источник новости: http://premier.gov.ru/eng/events/news/13849/