Vladimir Putin meets with Statoil CEO Helge Lund and Total CEO Christophe de Margerie

They discussed plans for joint projects, in particular the development of the Shtokman and Kharyaga fields.

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Prime Minister Vladimir Putin holds a meeting in Voronezh on preparations for spring field work

“Russian agriculture is showing very good numbers and prospects for further growth.”

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Vladimir Putin meets with Deputy Prime Minister Viktor Zubkov and Federal Financial Monitoring Service Head Yury Chikhanchin

The issues discussed at the meeting included the results achieved by the interdepartmental group on countering illegal financial transactions and corruption, which was established recently, as well as proposals to improve legislation in this sphere.

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Prime Minister Vladimir Putin holds a meeting on the implementation and financing of federal targeted programmes

"We need to work out a comprehensive strategy for implementing the federal targeted programmes. We should increase the accountability of the individuals and agencies in charge of implementing the projects. We also need to review the selection criteria and the system of objectives and indicators for the federal targeted programmes."

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Prime Minister Vladimir Putin holds a meeting on the tasks he set in his articles as a presidential candidate

“We need to go beyond simply disbursing the colossal amounts of funding that we have allocated towards achieving our purported goals. What we need to do is achieve new levels of quality in education, healthcare, defence and other crucial areas of the national economy. The money should be used for reform and to improve effectiveness.”

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Prime Minister Vladimir Putin holds working meeting with First Deputy Prime Minister Viktor Zubkov

Vladimir Putin and Viktor Zubkov discussed the state of the grain market and grain export opportunities. The First Deputy Prime Minister believes that the current market situation remains stable, and that Russia should not impose any grain export restrictions this year. Mr Putin instructed Mr Zubkov to prepare a meeting to assess preparations for the spring sowing season.

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Prime Minister Vladimir Putin meets with Federal Taxation Service head Mikhail Mishustin

Mr Putin and Mr Mishustin discussed FTS operating results for the first months of 2012, which Mr Putin deemed to be “decent.” In addition, Mr Mishustin reported on the implementation of the prime minister's directive to write off the public's personal tax liabilities, spoke about the expansion of online services, and also mentioned VAT refunds.

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Vladimir Putin attends an extended meeting of the Board of the Ministry of Healthcare and Social Development

“We have chosen an active policy of social development as a priority and never retreated from this principle even during the most difficult periods in our recent history.”

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Prime Minister Vladimir Putin chairs a meeting of the Government Presidium

Vladimir Putin has signed a government resolution decreeing a four-day holiday, from May 6 to 9.

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Prime Minister Vladimir Putin holds a working meeting with Minister of Communications and Mass Media Igor Schyogolev and Minister of Education and Science Andrei Fursenko

Mr Putin, Mr Schyogolev and Mr Fursenko summarised the results of the system to facilitate public monitoring of the presidential election. They also discussed its possible future use, primarily for educational purposes.

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Vladimir Putin holds a meeting with Minister of Economic Development Elvira Nabiullina

The meeting focused on investment activity, specifically foreign investment. According to the minister, the 2011 statistical indices “are not bad at all,” with investment in fixed assets increasing 8.3%. Aside from that, the participants discussed Russia’s accession to the WTO and the new opportunities – as well as the apprehensions felt in a number of industries.

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Vladimir Putin meets with Minister of Culture Alexander Avdeyev

They focused on Russian museums. The prime minister instructed the culture minister to prepare a meeting on the issue within 10-14 days, acting in compliance with the requests from museum employees made during his numerous meetings with culture professionals. They also considered the renovation of the Tovstonogov Bolshoi Drama Theatre and the construction of the Mariinsky Theatre Second Stage.

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Vladimir Putin attends Russian Cross-Country Skiing and Biathlon Paralympic Championship in Sochi

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Prime Minister Vladimir Putin visits the Battle of Borodino Panorama Museum in Moscow

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Vladimir Putin and his wife Lyudmila vote in the Russian presidential elections

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Prime Minister Vladimir Putin attends the award ceremony for the 2011 Russian Government Prizes in Culture. Minister of Culture Alexander Avdeyev presents the prizes

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Prime Minister Vladimir Putin meets with editors-in-chief of leading foreign media outlets

“We are pursuing a peaceful policy without any exaggeration or loud words, and we would like to see the world resort to force as little as possible when trying to settle complicated and even controversial international conflicts. (…) “Our biggest problem today is the economic and financial divide in society and the fact that a large number of people still live below the poverty line. Still, over the past years we have reduced the number of people living below the poverty line by half. I believe that, all in all, this is not a bad result.”

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