Transcript of the beginning of the meeting:

Vladimir Putin: Good afternoon, Mr Mezentsev. How is the Irkutsk Region doing?

Dmitry Mezentsev: Mr Putin, the Irkutsk Region is vast, and it has both considerable successes and problems. Our most pressing problem, forest fires, has shown improvement over the past few days. I reported to Emergencies Minister Sergei Shoigu today that the number of fires has fallen by a third in a single day. The fires have been contained in an area of 643 hectare within a single day. Not only forests but also meadows are on fire.

Vladimir Putin: Is the damage bad?

Dmitry Mezentsev: We are calculating it. Two-thirds of the area on fire is forest, while the rest is grassland. The Ministry of Emergencies is setting backfires. This is a method of fire fighting in which fires are set deliberately to stop or at least contain the wildfire. So we have to expand the area on fire in order to extinguish it.

Luckily, it's raining today. I think things will be better by the weekend. We are using a BE-200 fire-fighting plane made at the Irkutsk Aircraft Manufacturing Plant. The Siberian regional office of the Ministry of Emergencies has been a great help. Shoigu is greatly concerned about the Irkutsk Region. His attention and support have been tremendously important to us.

Vladimir Putin: What is the economic and social situation like in general?

Dmitry Mezentsev: We experienced hard times last year. Industry in our region is mostly commodity-based, so the problems in the aluminium, pulp-and-paper and timber foreign markets took a serious toll on us. We had to seek out addition sources of revenues to cover out social obligations, especially in autumn. Now, the regional educational system is shifting to the branch system of payment. A similar transition is practically complete in the cultural sphere. We expect to complete transition of healthcare and public sector social workers to the same compensation system before the end of the year.

Initial budget projections for the first half of the year are about 1.5 billion roubles of extra revenues due to the recovery in foreign markets and, possibly, to a certain improvement in tax collection. However, the timber industry still has major problems. But if it becomes more transparent, we expect to increase regional and municipal revenues to two or three billion roubles.

Vladimir Putin: What is the situation in the manufacturing sector?

Dmitry Mezentsev: Mr Putin, unemployment at the Siberian Federal District averages 2.96%. All told, roughly 40,000 people are out of work in the region. We are grateful to the Ministry of Economic Development for their help in creating the small business guarantee fund. As we can see that, small businesses have more than our concern and support - we are providing people with an opportunity to make money and become self-reliant.

Vladimir Putin: Is unemployment falling?

Dmitry Mezentsev: There has been a clear decline in the first half of the year.

Vladimir Putin: What about industrial output compared to the same period last year?

Dmitry Mezentsev: It is increasing.

Vladimir Putin: Do you mean industrial output or the gross regional product?

Dmitry Mezentsev: Industrial output. We will soon summarise the data for the first half of the year to specify forecasts for the remainder of the year before my report to the regional legislature. I think the economic recovery will increase our output even more than expected by September.

Vladimir Putin: I know the specifics of the production structure... Then things in Irkutsk itself need to be brought into order. I have talked to you many times about this. The city has just elected its new mayor. I hope he will manage to do this. You should start working with municipal authorities.

Dmitry Mezentsev: Mr Putin, we are grateful to you for the executive order that endorsed the organising committee for the 350th anniversary celebrations in the city, which will take place in September 2011. The committee gathered in full two days ago. There are many problems of course. The schedule is rather tight because, for objective reasons, we have started the most active preparation stage somewhat later than, say, Penza, Yaroslavl or other cities with upcoming anniversaries. However, we remember your visit last August and how you rightly criticised the functioning of municipal economy and the state of roads in the city. So we want to take a thoroughly different approach to the anniversary preparations, and show the people that the municipal and regional authorities have their interests in mind.

We have developed a comprehensive project to revive the historic part of the city. Old buildings, 95 to 110 or 120 years old, are among the problems of many Siberian cities. We have support from Minister of Culture Alexander Avdeyev and Alexander Kibovsky, head of the Federal Service for Cultural Heritage Protection. Together, in public-private partnership, we will improve the Old Town and preserve its 14 monuments of federal importance. As for the monuments that only exist on paper, we will have to make way for buildings restored according to their 19th century design. We want the neighbourhood to lead an active community life and have craftsmen workshops. The pianist Denis Matsuyev will have his class and office there. We have also suggested that the artist, sculptor and jeweller Dashi Namdakov move from Italy to Irkutsk. He will do so if the city gives him a house as a gift.

Vladimir Putin: You certainly need expert assistance for all this. But the matter concerns not only the preservation of historical heritage but also all-round urban development according to the latest standards. Irkutsk should become one of the principal Siberian cities, one that people want to live in.

Dmitry Mezentsev: Mr Putin, thank you for this viewpoint. We see the matter similarly. Here are the problems I want to raise. First, there is the municipal programme Irkutsk Roads, which is actually important to all of Angara region. It needs your support. The organising committee has discussed it, and I have talked about it with the ministers of finance and transport. They understand the situation. If you help us, we can greatly improve our roads by next September. Our VIP guests will have less cause to criticise us then, at least with respect to the municipal economy.

Vladimir Putin: Who do you mean by VIP guests?

Dmitry Mezentsev: We are pleased to welcome all our guests, Mr Putin.

Vladimir Putin: Okay. Very well.