Eleven main points of the President's message. News feed

Citizens have united around patriotic values not because they are happy with everything - there are plenty of difficulties and problems now. Russians are confident that they will be able to overcome them, they are ready to work for the good of the country.

Russian people strongly feel injustice and believe that they will be provided with equal opportunities, rights and freedoms—Russia defends these principles in its foreign policy, not without results. We are not talking about “compulsion to a worldview” or false unity - all this has already happened in the history of Russia, and it has not been forgotten.

Those who consider themselves more advanced, intelligent, “smarter” should treat other people and their opinions with respect, this is natural. Aggression is not justified, especially if it results in vandalism and violations of the law. The state will react harshly to such facts.

2. Mistakes of the past should remain in the past, speculation is unacceptable

The coming year is the year of the centenary of the revolution, this is another reason to deeply analyze the causes of any revolution. Russia has a thorny path, but Russians perceive it as something familiar. It is unacceptable to drag splits, anger and grievances of the past into today's life, to speculate on topics that affect almost every family.

3. Elections are competitive, the Duma is integral, the state is strong

The current election campaign was competitive. The authority of the legislative branch has strengthened and must be confirmed by deeds. All the promises United Russia", which has a constitutional majority, must be implemented. Society's immunity to populism and demagoguery is strengthening. The country could not develop freely on the basis of a weak state, with a State Duma torn apart by squabbles. There are many countries where such a situation opened the way to adventurers, coups and, ultimately, anarchy.

4. Demographics are improving

The meaning of all social policy is to save people and increase human capital. Natural population growth continues. In 2013, Russia's fertility rate was 1.7 - higher than most European countries. In 2015, the total fertility rate in Russia will be even higher - 1.78

5. Medicine will become more prestigious, hospitals will be connected to the Internet, doctors will be offered professional retraining

The social sector must attract young people; in this regard, new jobs are created and wages increase. Competition for medical and pedagogical universities. There were no perinatal centers in Russia at all; now there will be 94 of them in 2018. Medical mortality has dropped to 5.9 per 1000 patients - this figure is also better than in many European countries.

In 2016, about 900 thousand patients are receiving high-tech care. The waiting time for operations is reduced. Problems persist, there are still many of them, they relate to primary care and patient reception. Next year a system of professional retraining for doctors will be organized. Work will continue to simplify document flow. According to the head of the Ministry of Communications, all hospitals and clinics can be connected to the Internet - now the whole country will follow this promise.

6. New school places, support for gifted children

The school refurbishment program will continue. In 2017, there should be no unsafe school buildings left; the problem of second and third shifts must be solved. School education must meet two basic objectives: to provide knowledge and to educate a moral person. We need projects in theaters, cinema, television, and the Internet. Many experiments are being carried out both in Russia and abroad, but they must be treated with caution. Purely modern children's technology parks will increase to forty next year. Regional authorities need to consider creating centers to support gifted children. Business should also get involved in this work. The Sirius center has already declared itself to be the most successful.

7. New grants for young scientists, science should create finished products

To reach a new level of the economy and social sphere, we need our own scientific developments and end-to-end technologies—those that are used in all industries. But digital technologies also come with risks; for example, you need to build protection against cyber threats. In 2017, the foundations of the “new digital economy” development program will be laid, with an emphasis on domestic companies.

The number of budget places in universities in technical and IT specialties will increase. IN scientific field Strong figures who are ready to give practical results will be supported - the Russian Academy of Sciences should pay attention to this. A special line of grants will be launched for young scientists for periods of up to 7 years. Russia needs to learn how to turn advanced developments into successful commercial products - this problem has been traced for a long time, dating back to the Russian Empire, but it can be overcome.

8. Laws on the activities of NPOs need to be finalized, and they themselves need to be allowed to receive state funding and social work

A special sign of the times is charity events. The government should start supporting charitable and social non-profit organizations. The social potential of people must be in demand. Next year, the opportunity will open for NPOs to provide social services at the expense of the Russian budget. Local authorities should not be greedy, but should invite NGOs as much as possible to participate in social work, because they have not yet “been blinded.” It is also necessary to complete the formation of the legislative framework for NPOs and clarify the requirements for their competencies.

9. Active citizen - in every city, single-industry towns, landscaping, landfills eliminated

Officials should not hide in their offices, but communicate with citizens. Very often, issues of improvement and preservation of the historical appearance of cities are often resolved behind the scenes, and the right decisions are not always made.

In 2017, the regions will be allocated 20 billion rubles for improvement, including in single-industry towns. It is important that residents take part in this - the ONF should help monitor this. Programs for saving unique natural symbols of Russia will also be prepared. It is necessary to eliminate landfills, both in large cities and in villages.

10. Record figures for new housing, the Kerch Bridge is being delivered on time

85 million sq. meters of housing commissioned - this is a record figure in the entire history of the country. It is important that all this housing is sold, and here the state will continue to provide targeted support for mortgages.

Also, within two years, at least half of all roads in large agglomerations must be put in order. Construction of the Kerch Bridge is on schedule.

11. Financial reserves have been preserved, inflation is low, banks have survived

This year the decline in GDP will be insignificant. Two years ago, Russia faced an unfavorable external climate. Sanctions were used to force people to dance to someone else’s tune, although the main reasons for the slowdown in the economy “remain within ourselves,” in the lack of competition, shortage of investment resources, etc.

IN difficult conditions macroeconomic stability was ensured, reserves were preserved, their total volume now amounts to $103.86 billion. The gold and foreign exchange reserves of the Central Bank have also increased. Inflation is expected to be below 6%. The lowest was in 2011, last year it was 12%, this year it will be 5.8%, and next year we can reach the target of 4%.

Domestic banks have restored their profitability, the sector’s profit this year is 714 billion rubles, last year it was 193 billion rubles. Thanks to the work of law enforcement officers and the Central Bank, the banking sector was restored and weak players left. The banking system managed to replace foreign lending to companies and stabilize the situation. A decrease in inflation should create conditions for lower lending rates, but the volume of real lending has not increased—it has only decreased, despite the opportunities. Lending to small businesses also continues to fall.

12. The growth of certain industries, especially IT companies, they need to be supported with benefits

There has been a slight increase industrial production, the trend must be maintained. In the auto industry as a whole there was a slight decline, but trucks- growth of 14%, for buses - an increase of 35.2%, railway production - 21.8%, for freight cars - 26%, production of agricultural equipment - 26%. It is necessary to carry out systematic work to solve the problem of supporting non-state industry in high-tech orders of the military-industrial complex, so that in 3 years their participation will be reduced to servicing half of all orders. The volume of exports of domestic IT companies has doubled over the past 5 years, with profits reaching $7 billion. Tax benefits for such enterprises have had their effect. It is proposed to extend IT benefits until 2023, and then the industry high technology may become a key industry in the future.

13. Agriculture is growing, sanctions have helped, but they will not last forever

Previously, problems in agriculture were called a “black hole.” Today, the agricultural sector is a confident industry that is beginning to conquer international markets. The sanctions helped us, but this will not last forever; manufacturers need to take full advantage of this favorable situation. The export of agricultural products today gives us more than the sale of weapons - $14.5 billion versus $16.9 billion this year.

14. Regions - more independence in subsidies, local banks - simplified working conditions

Regions should be given more independence in agricultural subsidies, and their volume should be linked to an increase in arable land, an increase in productivity, creating an incentive to put idle agricultural land and advanced technologies into circulation. Regional banks could operate under much more simplified conditions than large federal players - this will not bring risks, they have only 1.5% of the market, and it will meet the needs of small businesses locally much better.

However, if the government gives more freedom, then the responsibility of the regions should also increase. It is necessary to support agricultural cooperation. Next year, the state will replenish the capital of the Corporation for the Development of Small and Medium Enterprises by almost 13 billion rubles. The quality of work of regional management teams will be determined by the quality of the business environment, which should be equally high throughout the country. Co next year The data of supervisory agencies will be publicly available: who punishes whom, how and where.

15. The economy is being renewed

More and more trade barriers are being erected around the world, and one of the main problems is the growth of protectionism. Russia must fight more actively to enter international markets; competition will help strengthen domestic producers.

All the examples given already speak of economic renewal. However, no later than May, the government will develop a substantive plan of action in the economy until 2023, where the participation of all industries will be spelled out, and the goal will be to reach a level of economic development above the world one. In addition, it is necessary to achieve independence of state finances from external factors, including prices for hydrocarbon raw materials.

16. The tax system should be more transparent

Despite external economic factors, since 2014 the authorities have not revised benefits. Russians have a request for a more transparent tax system. It is necessary to streamline existing fiscal benefits, make them more targeted and abandon unnecessary ones. At the beginning of next year, the authorities will consider this issue together with business representatives in order to develop the necessary laws in 2018 and put them into effect in 2019.

17. Self-employed citizens will be legalized

The definition of self-employed citizens as conducting “illegal business activities” will be abolished. Next year, it is necessary to clearly define the legal status of self-employed citizens. Justice is not about equalizing, but about creating equal opportunities for success.

18. The fight against corruption is not a show

The majority of civil servants are honest, decent people. But neither position, nor high connections, nor past merits can be a cover for dishonest people. However, no one has the right to make verdicts before the trial. The noise is often created artificially. The fight against corruption is not a show.

There have been cases when successful companies collapsed as a result of illegal actions of law enforcement agencies. We must thank parliamentarians for working on a law that strengthens the criminal liability of law enforcement officers for fabricating cases.

19. Foreign policy: priority to China, progress with Japan, willingness to cooperate with the USA

Myths about Russian aggression, propaganda, accusations of interference in other people's elections, bullying of Russian athletes, including Paralympians - all this was part of the external pressure on Russia in the past year. The doping scandal, at the same time, will make it possible to create a national anti-doping program as early as 2017.

All developments in international relations since cold war were wasted. Mentor teachings are already quite boring. If necessary, Russia itself can teach anyone. Russia does not want confrontation, does not and has never looked for enemies. Priority foreign policy Russia has and remains further deepening cooperation within the framework of the Eurasian economic union. The government must ensure that all promises for the development of the Far East are fulfilled. Mutually beneficial cooperation with China is a symbol of how countries can cooperate without domination and regardless of military force each of them. Russia also hopes for progress in relations with Japan. The authorities are ready to cooperate with the new American administration. The development of Russian-American relations on an equal basis meets the interests of the whole world - we have a shared responsibility for the nonproliferation regime, and attempts to break nuclear parity are a global threat.

20. The fight against terrorism is not a mythical task

Terrorism is one of the real, not mythical, international threats. The Russian military in Syria has proven that they can carry out tasks far from permanent places dislocations. And the special services, not without losses, are successfully fighting terrorism within the country.

Vladimir Putin began it by declaring a minute of silence in memory of the victims of terror and the Russian military personnel killed in Syria; the widows of the commander of the Su-24 bomber Oleg Peshkov and the marine Alexander Pozynich were present in the hall.

The head of state placed direct responsibility for the death of Russian servicemen on the Turkish leadership. Why Ankara, with which Moscow has always built partnerships, needed to shoot down our military aircraft - according to the president - is not clear. The head of state literally said the following: “Apparently, Allah decided to punish the ruling clique in Turkey, depriving it of reason and reason.”

Vladimir Putin promised: the Turkish leadership will regret what they did more than once, and Russia will definitely remind them of this. At the same time, there will be no nervous reaction from Moscow, designed for external effects, the President emphasized. Our actions will be based on responsibility to our country and people. We are not going to and will not rattle sabers, the head of state said.

Vladimir Putin also said: Russia is at the forefront of the fight against terror. It is necessary to destroy the bandits at distant approaches, otherwise they will kill and blow up on the territory of our country. Therefore, the decision was made to launch an air operation in Syria.

Vladimir Putin also stated that it is important to create one powerful fist to fight terrorism - a united anti-terrorist front - based on international law and under the auspices of the UN. And every civilized state must make a contribution not through declarations, but through concrete actions. There should be no double standards.

The President made special mention of the country's defense capability. Modern Russian weapons have proven their effectiveness. The invaluable practice of its use in combat conditions, according to Vladimir Putin, will be analyzed and used for further development.

Regarding the economy, Vladimir Putin noted that last year our country faced a number of challenges. This is the fall in oil prices and others export goods, and restrictions for our companies in international markets. The President emphasized: the situation is difficult, but not critical. There are already positive signals: there has been a decline in inflation, and capital outflow has slowed down. But this does not mean that you need to relax and leave everything as it is. The country must be prepared for the fact that the period low prices the oil supply will be delayed, we must prevent the depletion of our reserves.

At the same time, it is necessary to use the emerging opportunities, first of all, to change the structure of the economy. This should lead to the creation of modern jobs and improved living standards for millions of Russians. According to the President, the number of successful companies should grow in all industries. Import substitution and personnel training programs are working to solve this problem. Secondly, it is necessary to create special programs that will support industries that are at risk, such as construction, automobile construction, and light industry. Vladimir Putin emphasized that there is money for this. Thirdly, it is necessary to provide assistance to the most vulnerable citizens, first of all, people with disabilities. Need to deal with them professional retraining and employment.

The fourth task is to achieve budget balance. This necessary condition financial stability and independence of the country. It is also necessary to tighten control over the expenditure of public funds. Another task is to create a unified mechanism for monitoring the payment of customs duties and taxes. This will eliminate the so-called gray schemes. And, of course, it is necessary to strengthen trust between government and business and improve the business climate. The President emphasized that the tax burden will not increase in the coming years. Freedom of enterprise, Vladimir Putin noted, is the most important issue. It is by expanding freedom that we must respond to all the restrictions that are trying to be created for the country from the outside.

Vladimir Putin also proposed allowing regions to reduce the profit tax rate to zero as part of the implementation of special investment projects, including as part of the implementation of import substitution programs. As for support for individual industries, the President emphasized that only competitive companies will receive it.

Another topic was the development of agriculture - the President set the country a task by 2020 - to provide itself with domestic food. At the same time, Putin noted that Russia has made a breakthrough in the agricultural sector - income from the export of products in this area has exceeded income from the sale of weapons. At the same time, Vladimir Putin said that unused agricultural land should be confiscated from unscrupulous owners and transferred to those who want and can cultivate it. The amendments, the President noted, should be adopted next year.

There was also talk about improving the judicial system. Vladimir Putin noted that the law should be harsh for those who deliberately violated it and lenient for those who retreated for the first time. The President asked the State Duma to support proposals to decriminalize a number of articles of the criminal code that relate to minor crimes.

At the same time, Vladimir Putin emphasized: a fundamental reservation must be made: repeated commission of a crime must lead to criminal liability. According to the President, it is necessary to maintain the openness of justice. To achieve this, it is necessary, among other things, to expand the number of offenses that juries can consider. At the same time, since it is not always easy to assemble a board of 12 people, the president suggested thinking about reducing the board to 5-7 assessors. But at the same time, autonomy and independence in decision-making must be preserved.

Separately, the head of state focused on the elections to the State Duma, which will be held in 2016. He emphasized that it is necessary to ensure public confidence in their results, competition must be fair and transparent. And the main thing is to ensure the cohesion of society.

The President expressed hope that candidates will pay attention to the fight against corruption in their election campaigns. The President called this phenomenon an obstacle to the development of society.

The president named demographic issues among the main ones. Vladimir Putin proposed extending maternity capital for at least two years. The development of the healthcare system became another important topic. The President announced the need to finance high-tech operations using the funds of the compulsory medical insurance system, and demanded that the relevant laws be adopted during the spring session of the State Duma.

In conclusion, the President noted that only we ourselves can cope with the tasks facing the country. And he quoted the outstanding scientist Dmitry Mendeleev: “Divided ones will immediately destroy us, our strength is in unity.” At the same time, Russia, according to Vladimir Putin, remains part of the global world.

MESSAGE

PRESIDENT OF THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION

TO THE FEDERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION

MESSAGE OF THE PRESIDENT OF THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION

FEDERAL ASSEMBLY

Good afternoon, dear colleagues! Dear members of the Federation Council! Dear deputies State Duma! Citizens of Russia!

Today, as usual in Messages, we will talk about our tasks in the economy, social sphere, domestic and foreign policy. This time we will pay more attention to the economy, social issues and domestic politics.

We have to solve all these problems in difficult, extraordinary conditions, as has happened more than once in history. And the people of Russia have once again convincingly proven that they are capable of responding to difficult challenges, defending and defending national interests, sovereignty and the country’s independent course.

But here is what I would like to say, dear colleagues, in this regard. I’ve already said this publicly several times, but I’d like to repeat it today.

Citizens have united - and we see this, we must say thanks to our citizens for this - around patriotic values, not because they are happy with everything, that everything suits them. No, there are enough difficulties and problems now. But there is an understanding of their reasons, and most importantly, confidence that together we will definitely overcome them. Willingness to work for Russia, cordial, sincere concern for it - this is what underlies this unification.

At the same time, people expect that they will be provided with ample and equal opportunities for self-realization, for implementing entrepreneurial, creative, and civic initiatives; they expect respect for themselves, for their rights, freedoms, and for their work.

The principles of fairness, respect and trust are universal. We firmly defend them - and, as we see, not without results - in the international arena. But to the same extent we are obliged to guarantee their implementation within the country, in relation to each person and the entire society.

Any injustice or untruth is perceived very sharply. This is generally a feature of our culture. Society decisively rejects arrogance, rudeness, arrogance and selfishness, no matter who all this comes from, and increasingly values such qualities as responsibility, high morality, concern for public interests, willingness to hear others and respect their opinions.

The role of the State Duma as a representative body has grown. In general, the authority of the legislative branch has strengthened. It must be supported and confirmed by deeds. This applies to all political forces represented in parliament.

But, of course, the United Russia party, which, by the way, is celebrating its fifteenth anniversary today, has a special responsibility. The party has a constitutional majority in the State Duma and is the main support of the Government in parliament. And we need to organize our joint work in such a way that all promises and obligations made to citizens are fulfilled.

It was the citizens who determined the results of the election campaign, chose the path of creative development of the country, and proved that we live in a healthy society, confident in its fair demands, in which immunity to populism and demagoguery is strengthened and the importance of mutual support, cohesion, and unity is highly valued.

We are not talking, of course, about some kind of dogma, about ostentatious, false unity, much less about coercion to a certain worldview - all this, as you well know, happened in our history, and we are not going to go back to the past.

But that doesn't mean that juggling in beautiful words and hiding behind arguments about freedom, someone can offend the feelings of other people and national traditions.

You know, if someone considers themselves more advanced, more intelligent, even considers themselves smarter than someone else in something - if you are like that, but treat other people with respect, this is natural.

At the same time, of course, I consider a counter-aggressive reaction unacceptable, especially if it results in vandalism and violation of the law. The state will react harshly to such facts.

Tomorrow we have a meeting of the Council for Culture - we will definitely discuss issues that cause broad discussion, we will talk about the principles of mutual responsibility of representatives of civil society and artists.

But I want to especially emphasize: in culture, in politics, in the media and in public life, in polemics on economic issues, no one can prohibit free thinking and openly expressing one’s position.

I repeat, when we talk about solidarity and unity, we mean the conscious, natural consolidation of citizens for the sake of the successful development of Russia.

Is it possible to achieve meaningful strategic goals in a fragmented society? Is it possible to solve these problems with parliament, where instead of effective work there are competitions of ambitions and fruitless bickering?

Is it possible to develop with dignity on the shaky ground of a weak state and a weak-willed government controlled from the outside that has lost the trust of its citizens? The answer is obvious: of course not.

Recently we have seen many countries where such a situation opened the way to adventurers, coups and, ultimately, anarchy. Everywhere the result is the same: human tragedies and sacrifices, decline and ruin, disappointment.

It is also of concern that in the world, even in the seemingly most prosperous countries and stable regions, more and more new fault lines and conflicts are emerging on political, national, religious, and social grounds.

All this is superimposed on the acute migration crisis that, for example, European and other countries are facing. We know well the consequences of so-called great upheavals. Unfortunately, in our country in the last century there were many of them.

The coming year 2017 is the centenary year of the February and October revolutions. This is a good reason to once again turn to the causes and very nature of the revolution in Russia. Not only for historians and scientists - Russian society needs an objective, honest, in-depth analysis of these events.

This is our common history, and we need to treat it with respect. The outstanding Russian and Soviet philosopher Alexei Fedorovich Losev also wrote about this. “We know the whole thorny path of our country,” he wrote, “we know the agonizing years of struggle, lack, suffering, but for the son of his Motherland, all this is his own, inalienable, dear.”

I am sure that the absolute majority of our citizens have exactly this feeling of the Motherland, and we need the lessons of history, first of all, for reconciliation, for strengthening the social, political, civil harmony that we have managed to achieve today.

It is unacceptable to drag splits, anger, grievances and bitterness of the past into our lives today, to speculate in our own political and other interests on the tragedies that affected almost every family in Russia, no matter which side of the barricades our ancestors found themselves on then. Let us remember: we are one people, we are one people, and we have one Russia.

Dear Colleagues!

The meaning of our entire policy is to save people, to increase human capital as the main wealth of Russia. Therefore, our efforts are aimed at supporting traditional values and family, demographic programs, improving the environment, human health, and developing education and culture.

In 2013—demographers have a concept called “fertility rate”—it was 1.7 in Russia, which is higher than in most European countries. For example, I’ll say: Portugal - 1.2; in Spain and Greece - 1.3; Austria, Germany, Italy - 1.4; in the Czech Republic - 1.5. This is data for 2013. In 2015, the total fertility rate in Russia will be even higher, slightly, but still higher - 1.78.

We will continue changes in the social sphere so that it becomes closer to people, to their needs, and is more modern and fair. Social sectors must attract qualified people, talented youth, so we are raising the salaries of specialists and improving their working conditions.

I would like to note that competition for medical and pedagogical universities - quite recently it was almost zero - is steadily growing. In 2016, it was 7.8 people for teaching specialties, and after admission in 2016, the total competition for budget-funded places in medical universities was already almost 28 people per place. May God grant health and success to all young specialists in their work in the future.

I remember well how at one time I discussed with my colleagues projects for the development of high-tech medical care, as well as a network of perinatal centers, which we did not have at all. Now, in 2018, there will already be 94 of them in Russia.

And today our doctors save newborns in the most difficult cases. And according to these indicators, we have also taken the position of the leading countries in the world.

At the end of 2015, the infant mortality rate in Russia was 6.5 per thousand live births, and in the European region of the World Health Organization the figure was 6.6, that is, we were already a little better. Based on the results of 10 months of 2016, Russia reached the level of 5.9.

Over the past ten years, the volume of high-tech medical care has increased 15 times. Hundreds of thousands of complex operations are performed not only in leading federal centers, but also in regional clinics. If in 2005, when we started this program, 60 thousand people in Russia received high-tech medical care, in 2016 it will already be 900 thousand. We also need to move on. But still, compare: 60 thousand and 900 - the difference is significant.

Next year we need to put in place mechanisms for sustainable financing of high-tech care. This will make it possible to further increase its availability and reduce waiting times for operations.

In general, it must be said frankly that problems in healthcare remain in general; there are still a lot of them. And above all, they concern primary care. Its development must be given priority attention.

Citizens are often faced with queues and a formal, indifferent attitude. Doctors are overloaded, it is difficult to get to to the right specialist. There are often cases when clinics are equipped with the latest equipment, but medical workers simply do not have enough qualifications to use this equipment.

Starting next year, regular retraining of doctors will be organized at federal and regional medical centers and universities. At the same time, with the help of an educational certificate, a specialist will be able to choose where and how to improve his qualifications.

We will continue to increase the level of healthcare informatization in order to make it convenient and simple to make appointments and maintain documentation. It is necessary to free doctors from routine, from filling out heaps of reports and certificates, and give them more time to work directly with the patient.

Also using information technologies The effectiveness of control over the market of vital drugs will be significantly increased. This will make it possible to get rid of fakes and counterfeits, and stop inflated prices when purchasing medicines for hospitals and clinics.

Over the next two years, I propose to connect all hospitals and clinics in our country to high-speed Internet. This will allow doctors, even in a remote city or village, to use the capabilities of telemedicine and quickly receive advice from colleagues from regional or federal clinics.

I would like to draw the attention of the Ministry of Communications to this. The Minister assured us that this task is absolutely realistic and achievable.

I just said this from the podium, the whole country will now watch this closely.

Taking into account its geography, huge, sometimes difficult to access territories, Russia also needs a well-equipped air ambulance service. Starting next year, the air ambulance development program will cover 34 regions of the country, which will receive funds from the federal budget.

First of all, this is Siberia, the North, the Far East. For these purposes (the deputies know about this, this was also your initiative) in 2017, 3.3 billion rubles will be allocated (this should pass in the second reading) for the purchase of aviation services as part of the air ambulance development project.

Dear Colleagues! Everywhere throughout our large country, children should study in convenient, comfortable, modern conditions, so we will continue the program of reconstruction and renewal of schools. We should not be left with school buildings that are in disrepair, dilapidated, and lack basic amenities.

It is finally necessary to solve the problem of third shifts, and then second shifts. And of course, additional efforts need to be directed toward improving the qualifications of teachers. You know that since 2016, a program to create new places in general education organizations has been implemented. This program is designed for 2016 - 2025, 25 billion rubles are provided.

By the way, you and I know well that this is primarily the responsibility of the regional level. But we decided to support the regions in this important area. In total, 187,998 new school places are planned to be created between 2016 and 2019.

At the same time, the most important thing that worries parents and teachers, the public, is, of course, the content educational process how much school education meets two basic tasks that Academician Likhachev spoke about: providing knowledge and educating a moral person. He rightly believed that the moral basis is the main thing that determines the viability of society: economic, state, creative.

But only school hours from school curriculum here it will clearly not be enough - we need projects in the theater, cinema, television, museum venues, on the Internet that will be of interest to young people, will attract the attention of young people to the domestic classical literature, culture, history.

The school needs to actively develop creativity, schoolchildren must learn to think independently, work individually and in a team, solve non-standard problems, set goals and achieve them, so that in the future this will become the basis for their prosperous, interesting life.

It is important to cultivate a culture of research, engineering work. Over the next two years, the number of modern children's technology parks in Russia will increase to 40; they will serve as a support for the development of a network of technical clubs throughout the country. Business, universities, and research institutes must join in this work so that the children have a clear understanding: they all have equal opportunities for a start in life, that their ideas and knowledge are in demand in Russia, and they will be able to prove themselves in domestic companies and laboratories.

As the educational center for talented children “Sirius” has already declared itself successful. I believe that we need a whole constellation of such platforms, and I would recommend it to the heads of the regions Russian Federation think about creating centers for supporting gifted children in the regions on the basis of the best universities and schools.

But at the same time, what would I like to say here and what would I like to draw attention to? Our entire education system should be based on a fundamental principle: every child and teenager is gifted and capable of succeeding in science, creativity, sports, profession and life. Revealing his talents is our task, this is the success of Russia.

Dear Colleagues! I see in the younger generation a reliable, strong support for Russia in the turbulent, complex 21st century. I believe that this generation is capable of not only responding to the challenges of the time, but also participating on equal terms in shaping the intellectual, technological, and cultural agenda for global development.

It is no coincidence that many schoolchildren and students today participate in volunteer projects; they are actively developing in such important areas as caring for the sick, supporting the elderly, people with disabilities, education, sports, culture, local history, search movements, caring for nature and animals .

A special feature of our time is the widespread involvement of citizens in a variety of charitable events. Calls to in social networks, the media to raise funds for the treatment of patients, to help children quickly receive a response, and people do it sincerely, selflessly, as a response to the dictates of their hearts. Sometimes you are even surprised how people with little income quickly respond to their inner need to help those who especially need it.

I ask the Public Chamber and the Agency for Strategic Initiatives to substantively engage in supporting volunteer and charitable movements and non-profit organizations. The will and generosity of the citizens who participate in such projects create the atmosphere of common affairs that Russia needs so much, create colossal social potential, and it must be in demand.

It is necessary to remove all barriers to the development of volunteerism and provide comprehensive assistance to socially oriented non-profit organizations. The main decisions here have already been made. Starting next year, opportunities will open up for non-profit organizations with relevant experience to provide social services financed from the budget.

Now, dear colleagues, I would like to address many of you. I want both governors and municipal authorities to hear me. I ask you, as they say, not to be greedy, not to give out of habit, out of established preference, exclusively to government structures, but to involve as much as possible in the execution of social services and non-profit organizations. Let's be honest, they haven't lost sight of it yet; a cordial attitude towards people is very important. And let's together keep these issues under special control.

We are all interested in ensuring that the active entry of NPOs into the social sphere leads to an improvement in its quality. I instruct the Government, together with legislators, to complete the formation of a clear legal framework for the activities of NGOs - performers of socially useful services, to establish requirements for their competence, and at the same time, of course, without adding additional bureaucratic barriers. It is necessary to appreciate the demanding, interested, active position of citizens.

Once again I want to appeal to many of you: do not hide in your offices, do not be afraid of dialogue with people - meet halfway, talk honestly and openly with people, support their initiatives, especially when it comes to issues such as the improvement of cities and towns, conservation historical appearance and creation of a modern living environment.

Unfortunately, sometimes these issues are resolved behind the scenes, and when this happens, you really want to ask: “Are you sure that what you are proposing, based only on the ideas that arise in the back offices, is the best offer? Wouldn’t it be better to seek advice?” with people, ask them how they want to see the streets, their yards, parks and embankments, sports and playgrounds?”

Next year we will allocate 20 billion rubles to the regions for improvement programs, including single-industry towns, and it is a matter of principle that the residents themselves should participate in making decisions on the use of these resources and determine which improvement projects to implement first. I ask the All-Russian Popular Front to actively join in this work, and at the same time I draw attention to: it is necessary not only to organize effective control, but with its help to achieve the specific result that people are waiting for, and, of course, we need to support citizens who are ready to join improvement projects . It is important that civil society actively participates in solving such problems as improving environmental legislation, preserving rare species of animals and plants, and creating a humane system for treating stray animals.

Next year, 2017, has been declared the Year of Ecology. I instruct the Government to prepare programs for the conservation of unique natural symbols of Russia, such as the Volga, Baikal, and Altai.

Throughout the country, we need to start cleaning up contaminated areas, eliminating the landfills that the surroundings of many settlements have turned into. We recently spoke about this with activists of the All-Russian Popular Front. This is a problem not only in large cities, but also in villages and towns.

Further, large-scale programs to develop the modernization of the road network are already underway in Moscow and St. Petersburg. Starting next year, we will begin such projects in other large cities and urban agglomerations, where about 40 million people live. In two years, at least half of the roads here should be put in order. Now I will not dwell on this in more detail here, the decision has been made, the appropriate means have been outlined, we just need to work effectively.

We will pay the necessary attention to both the most important federal highways and the construction of a facility of national importance - the Crimean Bridge, its construction is progressing according to schedule.

Dear colleagues, two years ago we were faced with serious economic challenges, with unfavorable conditions on world markets, with sanctions that tried to force us to dance to someone else’s tune, as our people say, to neglect our fundamental national interests. However, I repeat, the main reasons for the economic slowdown lie, first of all, in our internal problems. First of all, this is a shortage of investment resources, modern technologies, professional personnel, insufficient development of competition, and flaws in the business climate. Now the decline in the real sector has stopped, and there has even been a slight industrial growth. But you know that last year our GDP decline was about 3.7 percent, I think that this year it will be insignificant. Over the 10 months of 2016 it amounted to 0.3 percent, and I think that this will be approximately the case.

Programs to support a number of industries, as well as the housing market, played an important role. I will also say this now, because there has been an increase in industrial production, a small, but positive trend - of course, it will need to be maintained.

So, on the housing market. More than 85 million were put into operation in 2015 square meters housing. This is a record figure in the entire history of the country.

We will continue to provide targeted assistance to those sectors of the economy that are still facing negative conditions. I have already said that there has been a certain, modest, but still growth in the field of industrial production.

In the automotive industry as a whole, we have a slight decrease, but for trucks - an increase of 14.7 percent, for light commercial vehicles - an increase of 2.9, for buses - an increase of 35.1 percent. In railway engineering there is an increase of 21.8, in freight cars - 26. The growth in the production of machinery and equipment for agriculture is showing very good dynamics - 26.8 percent. There is also a positive trend in light industry.

We have ensured macroeconomic stability, which is very important, and maintained financial reserves. The gold and foreign exchange reserves of the Central Bank did not decrease, but even increased. If on January 1, 2016 it was 368.39 billion dollars, now it is 389.4, almost 400 billion. The dynamics here are also positive.

We expect that by the end of this year, inflation will decrease significantly; it will be below 6 percent. Here I would also like to turn to numbers. If you remember, inflation in 2015 was 12.9 percent. I hope that this year it will not rise above six, it will be somewhere around 5.8. The dynamics are obviously positive and significantly positive.

Let me remind you that the lowest inflation was recorded in 2011. It was 6.1 percent. I repeat again, this year it may even be less. This means we can actually reach the 4 percent target next year. These are very good preconditions for achieving significant growth on the basis of a healthy economy.

However, I want to emphasize: stabilization does not mean an automatic transition to a sustainable rise. If we do not solve the basic problems of the Russian economy, if we do not fully unleash new growth factors, then we may be stuck near the zero mark for years, and that means we will have to constantly squeeze in, save, and postpone our development until later. We cannot afford this.

We have a different path, which involves clearly setting goals and gradually, systematically achieving them. It is this approach that has more than once given significant positive results, and in a fairly short time. Thus, at one time it seemed that problems in agriculture would exist almost forever. We know how they talked about this and how offended our agricultural producers were when they talked about agriculture as a kind of black hole, where no matter how much money you give, there is still no result. No, it turns out that everything can be arranged completely differently. We found proven solutions, adopted a state program, created a flexible system of supporting agricultural producers, and today the agricultural sector is a successful industry that feeds the country and conquers international markets.

But here, as our people say, every cloud has a silver lining, our so-called partners have introduced sanctions, which I said, we are taking retaliatory measures. Well, we helped our agricultural producers in the domestic market. But they must not forget that this cannot and probably will not continue forever, and the consumer needs a competitive environment in the market, so this favorable situation that has developed today must, of course, be taken full advantage of.

The export of agricultural products, which I have already mentioned, gives us more today than the sale of weapons. Just recently, we probably couldn’t even imagine this. I have already spoken about this publicly, and I can repeat it again from this rostrum. By the way, in the field of arms exports, we also maintain a fairly serious position: in 2015, $14.5 billion worth of exports were sold on the foreign market, and agricultural products worth more than 16 billion, 16.2 billion. This year we expect even more, it will be 16.9, most likely very good. Let's thank agricultural workers for this.

In the development of agriculture, much depends on the regions. I believe that they need to be given more independence in determining the priorities for the use of federal subsidies to support the agro-industrial complex, and their volume itself should be linked to an increase in arable land, an increase in productivity, and other qualitative indicators of production efficiency, thereby creating an incentive for putting idle agricultural land into circulation and introducing advanced agricultural technologies.

Here I would like to emphasize: if we give more independence in the use of federal budget funds, federal support, then the regions should also be responsible for the results and effective investment of the resources received, for strengthening their own economic base, solving problems in the social sphere, in housing and communal services increase.

Further, in order for our farmers to have new opportunities to enter the market, it is necessary to devote Special attention support for agricultural cooperation. I ask the Ministry of Agriculture, Rosselkhozbank, Rosagroleasing, as well as the Corporation for the Development of Small and Medium Enterprises to take up this issue; next year we will replenish its capital by almost 13 billion rubles.

We carried out a deep modernization of defense-industrial enterprises and the defense-industrial complex. The result is an increase in production volumes and, most importantly, a significant increase in labor productivity. The defense industry shows very good performance here and gives good example. In 2016, the expected growth rate of defense industry production will be 10.1 percent, and the expected growth rate of labor productivity will be 9.8 percent.

And now it is necessary to focus the industry on the production of modern competitive civilian products for medicine, energy, aviation and shipbuilding, space, and other high-tech industries. In the next decade, its share should be at least a third of the total production volume in the defense-industrial complex.

I ask the Government to organize systematic work to solve this problem with the participation of development institutions, VEB, the Russian Export Center, and the Industrial Support Fund.

Dear colleagues, the IT industry has become one of the fastest growing industries in our country, which is very pleasing. The volume of exports of domestic companies has doubled over five years. I have just given figures for the volume of exports of the defense industry and agricultural products. The defense industry is 14.5 billion. More recently, IT technologies amounted to a figure that was close to zero, now it is 7 billion dollars.

Other indicators also increased: revenue, tax revenues. Such returns were provided, including benefits on insurance premiums. The Ministry of Finance asked me not to say that this was only thanks to the benefits; I say that there were other, of course, tools to support the industry, but still we must admit that these benefits played a significant role in supporting IT companies. This measure allowed them to effectively realize their intellectual innovative potential. Look, at the beginning of their journey, in 2010, their tax contributions amounted to just over 28 billion rubles, and two years later - already 54 billion rubles. Imagine how tall it is! At the same time, the so-called lost income, taking into account benefits, is only 16 billion rubles. That is, real income even for the budget. To maintain this dynamic, I propose to extend these benefits until 2023. I am sure that in the next decade there is every opportunity to make the IT industry one of the key export industries in Russia.

The examples mentioned above show that we are already purposefully changing the structure of the economy, updating existing industries and forming new ones, creating modern companies capable of operating in world markets. We need to continue to move in this direction systematically and aggressively. What is needed is not abstract scenarios in which little depends on us, but a professional, verified forecast of development. It is necessary to clearly define what contribution to economic growth will be made by improving the business climate, launching large investment projects, increasing non-resource exports, supporting small and medium-sized businesses, and other measures, and what the role of regions and individual industries will be.

I instruct the Government, with the participation of leading business associations, no later than May of next year, to develop a substantive action plan until 2025, the implementation of which will make it possible to achieve economic growth rates above world rates at the turn of 2019-2020, and therefore to increase Russia’s position in the global economy.

Let me remind you that in 2014 we decided to fix the current tax conditions for business for four years. They did not revise them, despite changes in the economic situation, and this certainly had a positive impact on the work of enterprises.

At the same time, we must orient our tax system so that it works for the main goal: to stimulate business activity, to grow the economy and investment, and to create competitive conditions for the development of our enterprises. It is necessary to streamline existing fiscal benefits, make them more targeted, and abandon ineffective instruments.

I propose that over the next year, we carefully and comprehensively consider proposals for setting up the tax system, and be sure to do this with the participation of business associations. Despite the internal political calendar, we still need to prepare and adopt in 2018 all the relevant amendments to the legislation, to the Tax Code, and put them into effect from January 1, 2019, fixing new, stable rules for the long term.

At the same time, I ask the Government to work on improving the mechanisms for ensuring a sustainable budget and public finances, fulfilling all our obligations, regardless of external factors, including hydrocarbon prices.

Further. We have seriously updated the legal framework in the field of entrepreneurship. Now it is important to ensure effective law enforcement - and above all on the ground. Please note that in each region of the country, basic services for business: construction permits, access to infrastructure, and so on and so forth - must fully comply with the requirements of federal legislation and best regional practices.

Dear Colleagues! Quite recently in Yaroslavl, I think, we gathered and talked about this topic. This is some kind of impenetrable topic. This is an extremely important direction for our joint activities. We will closely monitor what is happening in the regions in these areas and determine the quality of work of regional teams largely based on these indicators. And this fundamental task must be solved next year. This will allow us to ensure not only uniform, but equally high quality business environment in all regions of Russia.

You and I have talked a lot about improving control and supervisory authorities; we have been talking about this for many years. Starting next year, their transparency will radically increase; data will be publicly available: who checks whom, how often, what results are obtained.

This will make it possible to quickly respond to abuses, to every fact of violation of the rights of entrepreneurs by controllers. Now I won’t list all these decisions made, there are enough of them, they just need to be executed. It is necessary to cancel instructions that do not in any way affect the quality of services or ensure the safety of citizens, but at the same time tie businesses hand and foot.

I would like to draw the attention of the Government: in the work of control and supervisory authorities, it is necessary to accelerate the introduction of an approach based on risk assessment, which will significantly reduce the number of inspections, but increase their effectiveness. I will add that supervisory authorities should be engaged not only in identifying violations, but also in prevention, not formally, but meaningfully, and (this is very important!) provide advisory assistance to entrepreneurs, especially those who are just starting their own business.

I have already given a direct instruction to exclude the interpretation of “the work of self-employed citizens as illegal entrepreneurial activity.” There is no need to cling to them for far-fetched reasons. And so that there are no such reasons at all, I ask you to clearly define the legal status of self-employed citizens over the next year and give them the opportunity to work normally and calmly.

Everyone who works honestly in their business or as an employee should feel that the state and society are on their side. Justice is not about equalization, but about expanding freedom, creating conditions for work that brings respect, prosperity and success. And vice versa - everything that limits opportunities and violates people’s rights is unfair.

I would like to thank parliamentarians for their support of the bill, which significantly increases the criminal liability of law enforcement officers for fabricating cases, including with the aim of interfering with the work of entrepreneurs.

I will separately dwell on the topic of the fight against corruption. IN last years There have been many high-profile cases against officials at the municipal, regional, and federal levels. At the same time, I would like to emphasize absolute majority civil servants are honest, decent people working for the good of the country. But neither position, nor high connections, nor past merits can be a cover for dishonest government officials. However (and I would also like to draw attention to this) before the court’s decision, no one has the right to pronounce a verdict on a person’s guilt or innocence.

And further. Unfortunately, it has become our practice to raise information noise around so-called high-profile cases. And representatives of investigative and law enforcement agencies themselves often sin with this. Dear colleagues, I would like to draw your attention to this and say that the fight against corruption is not a show, it requires professionalism, seriousness and responsibility, only then will it produce results and receive conscious, broad support from society.

Dear Colleagues! It is obvious that external restrictions and rising costs of domestic borrowing have reduced the availability of financial resources for enterprises and citizens. Nevertheless, the banking system managed to replace foreign lending to our companies and stabilize the situation - this is an obvious fact.

Now we must support business activity, the implementation of large economic projects, and affordable financing, especially since inflation is decreasing, I have already spoken about this, and this creates objective conditions for reducing the cost of bank loans. I repeat: the situation has indeed improved a little, but only in certain sectors. In general, lending to the economy is showing unstable dynamics.

As part of anti-crisis support in 2015-2016, we replenished the capital of the banking system by 827 billion rubles. According to estimates, this resource allowed banks to significantly increase lending to the real sector.

Yes, everything is clear, the value of the ruble has changed against the dollar, against the euro, and this must be taken into account, but still, even taking this into account, a decrease in lending is still taking place.

Of course, there is no doubt that we need to stimulate lending to the real sector. But the key question remains: what methods and means to do this? It is obvious that only stable banks with a solid capital reserve can develop lending.

This year, domestic banks have restored their profitability. The profit of this sector of the economy for 10 months of last year amounted to 193 billion rubles, and for the same period of this year already 714 billion rubles. Almost four times the growth.

In addition, thanks to the consistent and decisive work of the Central Bank, the banking system is cleared of offices that violate the law, the rights of clients, and conduct dubious financial transactions. Many of them, at least weak players, left the market. The banking sector has been rehabilitated and is being continued by the Central Bank. All this is a good basis for a rapid revival of the economy and the development of lending to the real sector.

I’m not saying that we need to blindly copy everything that is being done abroad, especially since the Russian economy and its structure differ significantly from other countries that apply such measures, but analyze all this practice, adopt everything that suits us , it is possible and necessary.

Thus, the non-banking financial sector operates successfully in many countries. It should be developed here too - this allows us to attract funds from investors and citizens into the economy through bonds and other mechanisms.

By the way, we have been discussing this topic for quite some time. I hope that the Bank of Russia and the Government will jointly work out proposals for the development of the financial market. Everything should, of course, be aimed at the objectives of economic growth, while any changes should not lead to macroeconomic imbalances and the inflation of so-called bubbles in the economy.

It is very important to support lending to small businesses, which continues to decline. What can and should be done additionally for this? Representatives of financial authorities also believe that this is possible.

If the largest banks, due to the scale and complexity of their operations, are subject to strict requirements in accordance with international standards, and some experts believe that even for us they are too strict, but now we will not go into details.

In any case, small regional banks that perform the important function of lending to small businesses and households and, as a rule, carry out the simplest banking operations, could operate under significantly simplified requirements for regulating their activities.

Moreover, this certainly cannot create any risks for the banking system as a whole, given their modest share in the entire banking system - only 1.5 percent of all banking assets. Such differentiated regulation of the banking system will allow clients to contact the bank that best suits their needs, and small businesses will not experience competition for credit resources with large companies.

Of course, the fundamental condition remains unchanged - each level of the banking system must be healthy and stable, so that both clients and depositors can be confident in the security of their funds.

Countries that can generate them will have a long-term advantage, the opportunity to receive enormous technological rent. Those who do not do this will find themselves in a dependent, vulnerable position. Cross-cutting ones are those that are used in all industries, these are digital, quantum, robotics, neurotechnology, and so on.

It is also necessary to take into account that in digital technologies, for example, there are risks, of course. It is necessary to strengthen protection against cyber threats, and the stability of all elements of infrastructure, the financial system, and public administration must be significantly increased.

I propose to launch a large-scale system program development of the economy of a new technological generation, the so-called digital economy. In its implementation, we will rely specifically on Russian companies, scientific, research and engineering centers of the country.

Provide such projects with financial resources, including focusing the work of the updated VEB (Development Bank) on these tasks. We will need qualified personnel, engineers, workers ready to perform tasks at a new level. Therefore, together with business, we are building a modern system of average vocational education, we organize training for teachers of colleges and technical schools based on advanced international standards.

We will increase the number of budget places in engineering disciplines, IT specialties, and other key areas that determine economic development. Next year, centers of excellence will be created at leading universities, including regional ones, to provide intellectual and personnel support for projects related to the formation of new industries and markets.

A powerful factor in the accumulation of scientific and technological reserves necessary for economic growth, for social development, fundamental science should also serve. It faces a dual task - to assess, predict future trends and propose optimal solutions to meet the challenges we face.

And in the scientific field, as elsewhere, we will develop competition and support the strong, capable of producing practical results. This must be taken into account by the Russian Academy of Sciences and all scientific organizations. We will continue to build a research infrastructure that will allow us to solve large-scale scientific problems.

Within the framework of the megagrant program, more than 200 laboratories have already been created, without any exaggeration, world-class, they are headed by scientists who determine global trends scientific development. By the way, many of them are our compatriots who previously left abroad.

I recently met with a group of such researchers. Already now, many of them spend most of their time working in Russian laboratories, working successfully and with pleasure. And they see that today in Russia interesting scientific problems are being set, a good research base is being created and material conditions are at a decent level.

But, of course, people have the right and must understand that they have a work horizon and a planning horizon; in this regard, I propose to ensure long-term funding for effective research projects, including through the resources of the Russian Science Foundation.

At the same time, it is fundamentally important to support our talented young Russian scientists, there are many of them, so that they create their own research teams and laboratories in Russia. A special line of grants will be launched for them, designed for a period of up to seven years. For these purposes, as well as for the development of scientific infrastructure and the opening of new laboratories, in 2017 alone, an additional 3.5 billion rubles will be allocated to the already declared resources for science.

And of course, the activities of research centers should be closely integrated with the education system, the economy, and high-tech companies. We need to turn research into successful commercial products, by the way, we have always suffered from this, from development to implementation a huge amount of time passes, and in general sometimes... We do not want confrontation with anyone, we do not need it: neither us, nor our partners, nor the international community. Unlike some foreign colleagues who see Russia as an enemy, we are not and have never been looking for enemies. We need friends. But we will not allow our interests to be infringed upon or neglected. We want and will be in charge of our own destiny, to build the present and future without other people's prompts and unsolicited advice.

At the same time, we are committed to a friendly, equal dialogue, to establishing the principles of justice and mutual respect in international affairs. We are ready for a serious conversation about building a sustainable system of international relations in the 21st century. Unfortunately, in this regard, the decades since the end of the Cold War have been wasted.

We are for security and the opportunity for development not for a select few, but for all countries and peoples, for respect for international law and the diversity of the world. Against any monopoly, whether we are talking about claims to exclusivity or attempts to customize the rules of international trade, limit freedom of speech, and actually introduce censorship in the global information space. They always reproached us for allegedly introducing censorship within countries, but now they themselves are practicing in this direction.

Russia actively promotes a positive agenda in the work of international organizations and informal associations, such as the UN, G20, APEC. Together with our partners we are developing our formats: CSTO, BRICS, SCO. The priority of Russian foreign policy has been and remains the further deepening of cooperation within the framework of the Eurasian Economic Union and interaction with other CIS states.

Of serious interest is also Russian idea formation of a multi-level integration model in Eurasia - the Greater Eurasian Partnership. We have already begun substantive discussions on it at various international and regional levels. I am convinced that such a conversation is possible with the states of the European Union, in which today there is a growing demand for an independent subjective, political and economic course. We see this in the election results.

The enormous potential for Russia’s cooperation with the Asia-Pacific region was demonstrated by the Eastern Economic Forum held this year. I ask the Government to ensure the unconditional implementation of all previously adopted decisions on the development of the Russian Far East. And, I emphasize again, active eastern policy Russia is dictated not by any current market considerations, not even by the cooling of relations with the United States of America or the European Union, but by long-term national interests and trends in global development.

In the current difficult conditions, one of the key factors in ensuring global and regional stability has become the Russian-Chinese comprehensive partnership and strategic cooperation. It serves as an example of world order relations, built not on the idea of dominance of one country, no matter how strong it may be, but on harmonious consideration of the interests of all states.

Today, China is emerging as the largest economy in the world, and it is very important that every year our mutually beneficial cooperation is replenished with new large-scale projects in various fields: trade, investment, energy, high technology.

The most important direction of Russian foreign policy is the development of a particularly privileged strategic partnership with India. The results of the Russian-Indian negotiations held in GOA in October top level confirmed that our countries have enormous potential for deepening cooperation in a variety of areas.

We count on qualitative progress in relations with our eastern neighbor - Japan. We welcome the desire of the leadership of this country to develop economic ties with Russia and launch joint projects and programs.

We are ready to cooperate with the new American administration. It is important to normalize and begin to develop bilateral relations on an equal and mutually beneficial basis.

Interaction between Russia and the United States in solving global and regional problems meets the interests of the whole world. We have a common responsibility for ensuring international security and stability, for strengthening non-proliferation regimes.

I would like to emphasize that attempts to break strategic parity are extremely dangerous and can lead to a global catastrophe. You cannot forget about this for a single second.

And of course, I count on the United States uniting its efforts in the fight against a real and not imaginary threat - international terrorism. This is precisely the task our military personnel are solving in Syria. Terrorists have suffered significant damage, the Russian army and navy have convincingly proven that they are capable of working effectively far from permanent locations.

By the way, we see the work that employees of special services and units are doing inside the country to combat terrorism. We also have losses there. All this, of course, is in the field of our attention. We will continue this work. I would like to thank all our military personnel for their professionalism and nobility, courage and bravery, for the fact that you - soldiers of Russia - value your honor and the honor of Russia.

Dear Colleagues! When people feel they are right, act unitedly, they confidently walk along chosen path. It has not been easy for us in recent years, but these trials have made us even stronger, truly stronger, and helped us better and more clearly identify the areas in which we need to act even more persistently and energetically.

By overcoming current difficulties, we created the basis for further movement forward and did not stop working on the development agenda, which is extremely important. That is, we did not delve into any details of the current day, we did not deal only with the problems of survival, we thought about the development agenda and ensured it. And today it is this agenda that is becoming the main one, coming to the fore.

The future of the country depends only on us, on the work and talent of all our citizens, on their responsibility and success. And we will definitely achieve the goals set before us and solve the problems of today and tomorrow.

Thank you very much for your attention.

Moscow Kremlin

But here is what I would like to say, dear colleagues, in this regard. I’ve already said this publicly several times, but I’d like to repeat it today.

Citizens have united - and we see this, we must say thank you to our citizens for this - around patriotic values, not because they are happy with everything, that everything suits them. No, there are enough difficulties and problems now. But there is an understanding of their reasons, and most importantly, confidence that together we will definitely overcome them. Willingness to work for Russia, heartfelt, sincere concern for it - this is what underlies this unification.

This year's election campaign also showed this. You know that the initiative to return to the mixed model of elections of State Duma deputies was supported in the 2012 Address. This was a fundamental step towards public opinion.

I believe that the course towards developing the political system, institutions of direct democracy, and increasing the competitiveness of elections is absolutely justified, and we will certainly continue it.

But this does not mean that by juggling with beautiful words and hiding behind arguments about freedom, someone can offend the feelings of other people and national traditions.

At the same time, of course, I consider a counter-aggressive reaction unacceptable, especially if it results in vandalism and violation of the law. The state will react harshly to such facts.

But I want to especially emphasize: in culture, in politics, in the media and in public life, in polemics on economic issues, no one can prohibit free thinking and openly expressing one’s position.

I repeat, when we talk about solidarity and unity, we mean the conscious, natural consolidation of citizens for the sake of the successful development of Russia.

It is also of concern that in the world, and even in the most seemingly prosperous countries and stable regions, more and more new fault lines and conflicts are emerging on political, national, religious, and social grounds.

The coming year 2017 is the year of the centenary of the February and October revolutions. This is a good reason to once again turn to the causes and very nature of the revolution in Russia. Not only for historians and scientists - Russian society needs an objective, honest, in-depth analysis of these events.

This is our common history, and we need to treat it with respect. The outstanding Russian and Soviet philosopher Alexei Fedorovich Losev also wrote about this. “We know the whole thorny path of our country,” he wrote, “we know the languid years of struggle, lack, suffering, but for the son of his Motherland, all this is his own, integral, dear.”

It is unacceptable to drag splits, anger, grievances and bitterness of the past into our lives today, to speculate in our own political and other interests on the tragedies that affected almost every family in Russia, no matter which side of the barricades our ancestors found themselves on then. Let's remember: we are one people, we are one people, and we have one Russia.

Dear Colleagues!

You know, I can’t help but say a few words about what’s really happening, what we have here, what we’ve achieved. Natural population growth continues.

In 2013 – demographers have a concept called “fertility rate” – it was 1.7 in Russia, which is higher than in most European countries. For example, I’ll say: Portugal - 1.2, in Spain, Greece - 1.3, Austria, Germany, Italy - 1.4, in the Czech Republic - 1.5. This is data for 2013. In 2015, the total fertility rate in Russia will be even higher, slightly, but still higher – 1.78.

We will continue changes in the social sphere so that it becomes closer to people, to their needs, and is more modern and fair. Social sectors must attract qualified people, talented young people, so we are raising the salaries of specialists and improving their working conditions.

I would like to note that competition for medical and pedagogical universities – quite recently it was almost zero – is steadily growing. In 2016, there were 7.8 people for teaching specialties, and after admission in 2016, the total competition for budget places in medical universities was already almost 28 people per place. May God grant health and success to all – young specialists – in their work in the future.

And today our doctors save newborns in the most difficult cases. And according to these indicators, we have also taken the position of the leading countries in the world.

Over the past ten years, the volume of high-tech medical care has increased 15 times. Hundreds of thousands of complex operations are performed not only in leading federal centers, but also in regional clinics. If in 2005, when we started this program, 60 thousand people in Russia received high-tech medical care, in 2016 this will already be 900 thousand. We also need to move on. But still, compare: 60 thousand and 900 – the difference is significant.

Next year we need to put in place mechanisms for sustainable financing of high-tech care. This will make it possible to further increase its availability and reduce waiting times for operations.

Citizens are often faced with queues and a formal, indifferent attitude. Doctors are overloaded, it is difficult to get to the right specialist. There are often cases when clinics are equipped with the latest equipment, but medical workers simply do not have enough qualifications to use this equipment.

But at the same time, what would I like to say here and what would I like to draw attention to? Our entire education system should be based on a fundamental principle: every child and teenager is gifted, capable of succeeding in science, creativity, sports, profession and life. Discovering his talents is our task, this is the success of Russia.

A special feature of our time is the widespread involvement of citizens in a variety of charitable events. Calls on social networks and the media to raise funds for the treatment of patients and to help children quickly receive a response, and people do this sincerely, selflessly, as a response to the dictates of their hearts. Sometimes you are even surprised how people with little income quickly respond to their inner need to help those who especially need it.

It is necessary to remove all barriers to the development of volunteerism and provide comprehensive assistance to socially oriented non-profit organizations. The main decisions here have already been made. Starting next year, opportunities will open up for non-profit organizations with relevant experience and access to the provision of social services that are financed from the budget.

Now, dear colleagues, I would like to address many of you. I want both governors and municipal authorities to hear me. I ask you, as they say, not to be greedy, not to give out of habit, out of established preference, exclusively to government structures, but to involve social services and non-profit organizations to the maximum extent possible. Let's be honest, they haven't lost sight of it yet; a cordial attitude towards people is very important. And let's together keep these issues under special control.

We are all interested in ensuring that the active entry of NPOs into the social sphere leads to an improvement in its quality. I instruct the Government, together with legislators, to complete the formation of a clear legal framework for the activities of NPOs - performers of socially useful services, to establish requirements for their competence, and at the same time, of course, without adding additional bureaucratic barriers. It is necessary to appreciate the demanding, interested, active position of citizens.

Unfortunately, sometimes these issues are resolved behind the scenes, and when this happens, you really want to ask: “Are you sure that what you are offering, based only on the ideas that arise in back offices, is the best offer? Isn’t it better to consult with people, ask them how they want to see the streets, their yards, parks and embankments, sports and playgrounds?”

Next year, 2017, has been declared the Year of Ecology. I instruct the Government to prepare programs for the conservation of unique natural symbols of Russia, such as the Volga, Baikal, and Altai.

Throughout the country, we need to start cleaning up contaminated areas, eliminating the landfills that the surroundings of many populated areas have turned into. We recently talked about this with activists of the All-Russian Popular Front. This is a problem not only in large cities, but also in villages and towns.

We will pay the necessary attention to the most important federal highways and to the construction of a facility of national importance - the Crimean Bridge, its construction is progressing according to schedule.

Programs to support a number of industries, as well as the housing market, played an important role. I will also talk about this now, because there has been an increase in industrial production, a small, but positive trend - of course, it will need to be maintained.

So, on the housing market. In 2015, more than 85 million square meters of housing were commissioned. This is a record figure in the entire history of the country.

It is very important here that this be implemented, of course, and we need to increase people’s purchasing power. I will also say this, keeping in mind our mortgage support programs.

We will continue to provide targeted assistance to those sectors of the economy that are still facing negative conditions. I have already said that there has been a definite, modest, but still growth in industrial production.

In the automotive industry as a whole, we have a slight decrease, but for trucks there is an increase of 14.7 percent, for light commercial vehicles there is an increase of 2.9 percent, and for buses there is an increase of 35.1 percent. In railway engineering - an increase of 21.8, in freight cars - 26. Very good dynamics are demonstrated by the growth in the production of machinery and equipment for agriculture - 26.8 percent. There are also positive dynamics in light industry.

Let me remind you that the lowest inflation was recorded in 2011, it was 6.1 percent. I repeat again, this year it may even be less. This means we can actually reach the 4 percent target next year. These are very good preconditions for achieving significant growth on the basis of a healthy economy.

However, I want to emphasize: stabilization does not mean an automatic transition to a sustainable rise. If we do not solve the basic problems of the Russian economy, if we do not launch new growth factors to their full potential, then we may be stuck near the zero mark for years, and that means we will have to constantly squeeze in, save, and postpone our development until later. We cannot afford this.

We have a different path, which involves clearly setting goals and gradually, systematically achieving them. It is this approach that has repeatedly given significant positive results, and in a fairly short time. Thus, at one time it seemed that problems in agriculture would exist almost forever. We know how they talked about this and how offended our agricultural producers were when they talked about agriculture as a kind of black hole No matter how much money you give, there is still no result. No, it turns out that everything can be arranged completely differently. We found proven solutions, adopted a state program, created a flexible system of supporting agricultural producers, and today the agricultural sector is a successful industry that feeds the country and conquers international markets.

But here, as our people say, every cloud has a silver lining, our so-called partners have introduced sanctions, which I mentioned, and we are taking retaliatory measures. Well, we helped our agricultural producers in the domestic market. But they must not forget that this cannot and probably will not continue forever, and the consumer needs a competitive environment in the market, so this favorable situation that has developed today must, of course, be taken full advantage of.

The export of agricultural products, which I have already mentioned, gives us more today than the sale of weapons. Just recently, we probably couldn’t even imagine this. I have already spoken about this publicly, and I can repeat it again from this rostrum. By the way, in the field of arms exports, we also maintain a fairly serious position: in 2015, $14.5 billion worth of exports were sold on the foreign market, and agricultural products – more than 16 billion, 16.2 billion. This year we expect even more, it will most likely be 16.9, very good. Let's thank agricultural workers for this.

In the development of agriculture, much depends on the regions. I believe that they need to be given more independence in determining priorities for the use of federal subsidies to support the agro-industrial complex, and their very volume should be linked to an increase in arable land, increased productivity, and other qualitative indicators of production efficiency, thereby creating an incentive for putting idle agricultural land into circulation and introducing advanced agricultural technologies .

Further, in order for our farmers to have new opportunities to enter the market, it is necessary to pay special attention to supporting agricultural cooperation. I ask the Ministry of Agriculture, Russian Agricultural Bank, Rosagroleasing, as well as the Corporation for the Development of Small and Medium Enterprises to take up this issue; next year we will replenish its capital by almost 13 billion rubles.

We carried out a deep modernization of defense-industrial enterprises and the defense-industrial complex. The result is an increase in production volumes and, most importantly, a significant increase in labor productivity. The defense industry shows very good results here and sets a good example. In 2016, the expected growth rate of defense industry production will be 10.1 percent, and the expected growth rate of labor productivity will be 9.8 percent.

I ask the Government to organize systematic work to solve this problem with the participation of development institutions, VEB, the Russian Export Center, and the Industrial Support Fund.

Dear colleagues, the IT industry has become one of the fastest growing industries in our country, which is very pleasing. The volume of exports of domestic companies has doubled over five years. I have just given figures for the volume of exports of defense industry and agricultural products. Defense industry is 14.5 billion. More recently, IT technologies amounted to a figure that was close to zero, now it is 7 billion dollars.

Other indicators also increased: revenue, tax revenues. This benefit was also provided by benefits on insurance premiums. The Ministry of Finance asked me not to say that this was only due to benefits; I am saying that there were, of course, other tools to support the industry, but we still must admit that these benefits played a significant role in supporting IT companies. This measure allowed them to effectively realize their intellectual innovative potential. Look, at the beginning of their journey, in 2010, their tax payments amounted to just over 28 billion rubles, and two years later – already 54 billion rubles. Imagine how tall it is! At the same time, the so-called lost income, taking into account benefits, is only 16 billion rubles. That is, real income even for the budget. To maintain this momentum, I propose to extend these benefits until 2023. I am sure that in the next decade there is every opportunity to make the IT industry one of the key export industries in Russia.

The examples mentioned above show: we are already purposefully changing the structure of the economy, updating existing industries and forming new ones, creating modern companies capable of operating in world markets. We need to continue to move in this direction systematically and aggressively. What is needed is not abstract scenarios in which little depends on us, but a professional, verified forecast of development. It is necessary to clearly define what contribution to economic growth will be made by improving the business climate, launching large investment projects, increasing non-resource exports, supporting small and medium-sized businesses, and other measures, and what the role of regions and individual industries will be.

I instruct the Government, with the participation of leading business associations, no later than May of next year, to develop a substantive action plan until 2025, the implementation of which will allow us to reach economic growth rates above world rates at the turn of 2019–2020, and therefore increase Russia’s position in the global economy.

Dear Colleagues! I repeat, it is important that such a plan is supported and has the confidence of the business community, so that entrepreneurs are actively involved in its implementation. Today, it is obvious that people are growing in demand for expanded economic freedoms (we have talked about this more than once), for stable, sustainable, predictable rules for doing business, including the tax system. Let me remind you that in 2014 we decided to fix the current tax conditions for business for four years. They did not revise them, despite changes in the economic situation, and this certainly had a positive impact on the work of enterprises.

I propose that over the next year, we carefully and comprehensively consider proposals for setting up the tax system, and be sure to do this with the participation of business associations. Despite the internal political calendar, we still need to prepare and adopt all relevant amendments to legislation and the Tax Code in 2018, and put them into effect on January 1, 2019, fixing new stable rules for the long term.

Further. We have seriously updated the legal framework in the field of entrepreneurship. Now it is important to ensure effective law enforcement – and above all on the ground. Please note that in every region of the country, basic services for business: construction permits, access to infrastructure, and so on and so forth – must fully comply with the requirements of federal legislation and best regional practices.

Dear Colleagues! Quite recently in Yaroslavl, I think, we met and talked about this topic. This is not just a passing topic; it is an extremely important area of our joint activities. We will closely monitor what is happening in the regions in these areas and determine the quality of work of regional teams largely based on these indicators. And this fundamental task must be solved next year. This will allow us to ensure not only a uniform, but also an equally high quality of business environment in all regions of Russia.

This will make it possible to quickly respond to abuses, to every fact of violation of the rights of entrepreneurs by controllers. Now I will not list all these decisions made, there are enough of them, it is only necessary that they be implemented. It is necessary to cancel instructions that do not in any way affect the quality of services or ensure the safety of citizens, but at the same time tie businesses hand and foot.

I would like to draw the attention of the Government: in the work of control and supervisory authorities, it is necessary to accelerate the introduction of an approach based on risk assessment, which will significantly reduce the number of inspections, but increase their effectiveness. I will add that supervisory authorities should be engaged not only in identifying violations, but also in prevention, not formally, but meaningfully, and - this is very important - provide advisory assistance to entrepreneurs, especially those who are just starting their own business.

I have already given a direct instruction to exclude the interpretation of the work of self-employed citizens as illegal entrepreneurial activity. There is no need to cling to them for far-fetched reasons. And so that there are no such reasons at all, I ask that over the next year the legal status of self-employed citizens be clearly defined and given the opportunity to work normally and calmly.

Everyone who works honestly in their business or whatever employee, must feel that the state and society are on his side. Justice is not about equalization, but about expanding freedom, creating conditions for work that brings respect, prosperity and success. And, on the contrary, everything that limits opportunities and violates people’s rights is unfair.

Last year's Address talked about pressure on business from some representatives of law enforcement agencies. As a result of such actions, successful companies often fall apart, and people's property is taken away. I would like to thank parliamentarians for their support of the bill, which significantly increases the criminal liability of law enforcement officers for fabricating cases, including with the aim of interfering with the work of entrepreneurs.

I will separately dwell on the topic of the fight against corruption. In recent years, there have been many high-profile cases against officials at the municipal, regional, and federal levels. At the same time, I would like to emphasize that the vast majority of civil servants are honest, decent people working for the good of the country. But neither position, nor high connections, nor past merits can be a cover for dishonest government officials. However, and I would also like to draw attention to this, until a court decision, no one has the right to pronounce a verdict on a person’s guilt or innocence.

Now we must support business activity, the implementation of large economic projects, and accessible financing, especially since inflation is decreasing, I have already spoken about this, and this creates objective conditions for reducing the cost of bank loans. I repeat, the situation has indeed improved a little, but only in certain sectors. In general, lending to the economy is showing unstable dynamics.

As part of anti-crisis support in 2015–2016, we replenished the capital of the banking system by 827 billion rubles. According to estimates, this resource allowed banks to significantly increase lending to the real sector.

However, the volume of such loans has not increased this year, and even decreased slightly. I know about calculations in rubles, in foreign currencies, but the decrease still occurred, even taking into account exchange rate differences; I would like to draw the attention of those experts who believe that it is very important to pay attention to the exchange rate difference. Yes, everything is clear, the value of the ruble has changed against the dollar, against the euro, and this must be taken into account, but even with this circumstance taken into account, there is still a decrease in lending.

In addition, thanks to the consistent and decisive work of the Central Bank, the banking system is cleared of offices that violate the law, the rights of clients, and conduct dubious financial transactions. Many of them, at least weak players, left the market. The banking sector has been rehabilitated and is being continued by the Central Bank. All this is a good basis for quickly reviving the economy and developing lending to the real sector.

In general, a number of countries have created incentives for banks to lend specifically to this particular sector of the economy. At the same time, in some countries, restrictions are being discussed on the ability of banks to invest raised funds in financial instruments. I’m not saying that we need to blindly copy everything that is done abroad, especially since the Russian economy and its structure differ significantly from other countries that apply such measures, but analyze all this practice, adopt everything that suits us , it is possible and necessary.

Thus, the non-banking financial sector operates successfully in many countries. It should be developed here too: this allows us to attract funds from investors and citizens into the economy through bonds and other mechanisms.

By the way, we have been discussing this topic for quite a long time. I hope that the Bank of Russia and the Government will jointly work out proposals for the development of the financial market. Everything should, of course, be aimed at the objectives of economic growth, while any changes should not lead to the manifestation of macroeconomic imbalances and the inflation of so-called bubbles in the economy.

If the largest banks, due to the scale and complexity of their operations, are subject to strict requirements in accordance with international standards (and some experts believe that even for us they are too strict, but we will not go into details now), in any case, small regional banks that perform important the function of lending to small businesses and households, which, as a rule, carry out the simplest banking operations, could operate under significantly simplified requirements for regulating their activities. Moreover, this, of course, cannot create any risks for the banking system as a whole, given their modest share in the entire banking system - only 1.5 percent of all banking assets. Such differentiated regulation of the banking system will allow clients to contact the bank that best suits their needs, and small businesses will not experience competition for credit resources with large companies.

Of course, the fundamental condition remains unchanged: each level of the banking system must be healthy and stable, so that both clients and depositors can be confident in the security of their funds.

Dear Colleagues! To reach a new level of development of the economy and social sectors, we need our own advanced developments and scientific solutions. It is necessary to focus on areas where the powerful technological potential of the future is accumulating, and these are digital, other, so-called end-to-end technologies that today determine the appearance of all spheres of life. Countries that can generate them will have a long-term advantage, the opportunity to receive enormous technological rent. Those who do not do this will find themselves in a dependent, vulnerable position. Cross-cutting ones are those that are used in all industries: digital, quantum, robotics, neurotechnology, and so on.

I propose to launch a large-scale systemic program for the development of the economy of a new technological generation, the so-called digital economy. In its implementation, we will rely specifically on Russian companies, scientific, research and engineering centers of the country.

This is a question of national security and technological independence of Russia, in the full sense of the word - our future. It is necessary to take an inventory and remove all administrative, legal, and any other barriers that prevent businesses from entering both existing and emerging high-tech markets; provide such projects with financial resources, including targeting the work of the renewed VEB (Development Bank) towards these tasks.

We will need qualified personnel, engineers, workers ready to perform tasks at a new level. Therefore, together with business, we are building a modern system of secondary vocational education, organizing the training of college and technical school teachers on the basis of advanced international standards.

Fundamental science should also serve as a powerful factor in the accumulation of scientific and technological resources necessary for economic growth and social development. Its task is twofold: to assess and predict future trends and to propose optimal solutions to meet the challenges we face.

Within the framework of the megagrant program, more than 200 laboratories have already been created, without any exaggeration - world-class; they are headed by scientists who determine trends in global scientific development (by the way, many of them are our compatriots who previously went abroad).

At the same time, it is fundamentally important to support our talented young Russian scientists - there are many of them - so that they create their own research teams and laboratories in Russia. A special line of grants will be launched for them, designed for a period of up to seven years. For these purposes, as well as for the development of scientific infrastructure and the opening of new laboratories, in 2017 alone, an additional 3.5 billion rubles will be allocated to the already declared resources for science.

And of course, the activities of research centers should be closely integrated with the education system, the economy, and high-tech companies. We need to turn research into successful commercial products; by the way, we have always suffered from this: a huge amount of time passes from development to implementation, and sometimes in general... This applies not only to our time, and not even to the Soviet era, but also in Russian Empire everything was the same. We need to reverse this trend - we can do it. To solve this problem, two years ago we launched the National Technology Initiative, it is designed to provide leadership positions Russian companies and products in the most promising markets of the future.

Dear Colleagues! Everything I just talked about, all these priorities are included in the Strategy for Scientific and Technological Development of Russia. The decree approving it was signed.

Everyone is well aware that in recent years we have faced attempts at external pressure. I’ve already talked about this twice and remembered it. Everything was used: from myths about Russian aggression, propaganda, interference in other people’s elections – to the persecution of our athletes, including Paralympic athletes.

By the way, as I said, every cloud has a silver lining, the so-called doping scandal, I am sure, will allow us to create in Russia the most advanced system to combat this evil. I assume that the national anti-doping program will be ready at the beginning of next year.

What I would like to say: custom information campaigns, the invention and planting of incriminating evidence, mentor teachings are already quite boring for everyone - if necessary, we ourselves can teach anyone, but we understand the extent of our responsibility and are truly sincerely ready to take part in solving global and regional problems – of course, where our participation is appropriate, in demand and necessary.

We don’t want confrontation with anyone, we don’t need it: neither us, nor our partners, nor the world community. Unlike some foreign colleagues who see Russia as an enemy, we are not and have never been looking for enemies. We need friends. But we will not allow our interests to be infringed upon or neglected. We want and will be in control of our own destiny, to build the present and future without other people's prompts and unsolicited advice.

We are for security and the opportunity for development not for a select few, but for all countries and peoples, for respect for international law and the diversity of the world. Against any monopoly, whether we are talking about claims to exclusivity or attempts to customize the rules of international trade, limit freedom of speech, and actually introduce censorship in the global information space. They always reproached us for allegedly introducing censorship within the country, but now they themselves are practicing in this direction.

Russia actively promotes a positive agenda in the work of international organizations and informal associations, such as the UN, G20, APEC. Together with our partners, we are developing our formats: CSTO, BRICS, SCO. The priority of Russian foreign policy has been and remains the further deepening of cooperation within the framework of the Eurasian Economic Union and interaction with other CIS states.

The Russian idea of forming a multi-level integration model in Eurasia - a large Eurasian partnership - is also of serious interest. We have already begun substantive discussions on it at various international and regional levels. I am convinced that such a conversation is possible with the states of the European Union, in which today there is a growing demand for an independent subjective, political and economic course. We see this in the election results.

The enormous potential for Russia’s cooperation with the Asia-Pacific region was demonstrated by the Eastern Economic Forum held this year. I ask the Government to ensure the unconditional implementation of all previously adopted decisions on the development of the Russian Far East. And, let me emphasize again, Russia’s active eastern policy is not dictated by any current market considerations, not even by the cooling of relations with the United States of America or the European Union, but by long-term national interests and trends in global development.

The most important direction of Russian foreign policy is the development of a particularly privileged strategic partnership with India. The results of the Russian-Indian high-level negotiations held in Goa in October confirmed that our countries have enormous potential for deepening cooperation in a variety of areas.

We count on qualitative progress in relations with our eastern neighbor, Japan. We welcome the desire of the leadership of this country to develop economic ties with Russia and launch joint projects and programs.

We are ready to cooperate with the new American administration. It is important to normalize and begin to develop bilateral relations on an equal and mutually beneficial basis.

I would like to emphasize that attempts to break strategic parity are extremely dangerous and can lead to a global catastrophe. You cannot forget about this for a single second.

And, of course, I count on the United States joining forces in the fight against a real, and not an imaginary, threat - international terrorism. This is precisely the task our military personnel are solving in Syria. The terrorists suffered significant damage, the Russian army and navy convincingly proved that they are capable of working effectively far from permanent locations.

By the way, we see the work that employees of special services and units are doing inside the country to combat terrorism. We also have losses there. All this, of course, is in the field of our attention. We will continue this work. I would like to thank all our military personnel for their professionalism and nobility, courage and bravery, for the fact that you, Russian soldiers, value your honor and the honor of Russia.

Dear Colleagues!

When people feel they are right, act unitedly, they confidently follow their chosen path. It has not been easy for us in recent years, but these trials have made us even stronger, truly stronger, and helped us better and more clearly identify the areas in which we need to act even more persistently and energetically.

By overcoming current difficulties, we created the basis for further movement forward and did not stop working on the development agenda, which is extremely important. That is, we did not delve into some of the little details of the current day, we did not deal only with problems of survival, we thought about the development agenda and ensured it. And today it is this agenda that is becoming the main one, coming to the fore.

Thank you very much for your attention.

The completed Address of Russian President Vladimir Putin to both chambers of the Federal Assembly became a significant result of the political year and a kind of application for future development. Moreover, as part of the message, the head of state paid much attention to the long-term time horizon of 5-10-15 years, especially in the context economic development in general and its industrial component in particular. Life analyzed the main points of Vladimir Putin’s speech and identified 10 key provisions that determine its character.

1. The development of Russia is possible only with the unity of the people and respect for their dignity and work. The President especially noted the approaching 100th anniversary of two significant Russian revolutions of 1917 - the February and October, calling on them not to repeat the mistakes of the past and to remain a united people, with respect for their traditions and continuous history.

2. Politic system Russia has developed, all measures to reconfigure it and increase efficiency were taken in a timely manner. The recent elections to the State Duma this year showed that all parties, but especially United Russia, bear a special responsibility for the trust of citizens.

3. You cannot engage in public vandalism or impose social groups a certain worldview, which primarily concerns cultural figures on the one hand and some representatives of civil society on the other.

4. Russia was able to reverse negative trends in the healthcare sector and overcome the demographic decline According to the results of 2016, the birth rate will be 1.78, which exceeds the level of many developed European countries. In the country in 2018, there will be 94 perinatal centers operating, and the mortality rate per 1000 people will drop to a coefficient of 5.9.

5. The development of education, especially in connection with the course towards building a new economy based on deep penetration innovations and IT technologies will require modernization, children's technology parks will be developed, and budget places for technical and natural science specialties will increase.

6. The state will support youth volunteer and environmental projects, as well as NGOs that provide social services, which will have access to budget funding starting next year.

7. The defense sector remains the engine of economic development, whose export share is in the region of $16 billion, and labor productivity increased by 9.8%, which is the result of updating the technological park of equipment and machine tools. The defense industry is actively catching up with agriculture, which from a “bottomless hole” has turned into an extremely profitable industry conquering foreign markets - the export of agricultural products at the end of 2016 came close to the sale of weapons, amounting to $14.5 billion.

8. The moratorium on changes to the tax system within 4 years, introduced in 2014, will be maintained, and starting next year, together with the relevant community and business, the contours of a new tax reform will be outlined, which will come into force on January 1, 2019 and become the long-term basis of tax legislation.

9. The driver of the economy will be information and “end-to-end” technologies, which will give countries that have mastered their strategic advantages the opportunity to benefit from gigantic technological rent. The Russian IT technology sector has increased exports almost from scratch in 2010 to 7 billion this year, and the state will continue to support it, in particular, by extending benefits on insurance payments.

10. Russia will pursue a peaceful and consistent policy in the field of compliance with international law - but will not allow anyone to talk to it in a mentoring tone, in the style of teachings. Russia will develop a strategic partnership with China and India, and also hopes that with the advent of the new American administration, cooperation with the United States will be established on issues of combating terrorism, maintaining the nonproliferation regime and global stability.

Life conducted a full text broadcast of the most important political event of the outgoing season, which you can view.