Prime Minister Putin's introductory remarks:

Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen,

First of all, I'd like to say that our Belarusian partners asked me to pass on their regards to you – I've just met with a delegation of the Belarusian government. Our talks focused on the prospects for integration processes in the territory of the former Soviet Union, particularly in the common economic space. We also discussed several issues pertaining to our bilateral relations. I think we have found solutions to them and even new cooperation opportunities.

I'd like to start this meeting with an issue that is not directly related to our agenda. As you know, leading economies are developing their post-recessionary strategies. Russia also needs one. Our growth strategy should take into account the new reality and provide solutions to the challenges of economic modernisation and an overhaul of the social security system and public administration.

It is important to get the general public and experts involved in the discussion of this strategy. As you know, in 2012 the government economic strategy up to 2020 will enter its second phase. Over the first phase, our objective was to adopt basic legislation and start putting several of our plans into operation – and we have accomplished almost all our goals already. Now it's time to consider our objectives for the second phase, starting in 2012.

We will need to amend our plans based on the experience we gained through the global financial and economic crisis.

It is necessary to get federal and regional authorities, the business community, leading analysts and renowned international experts involved in the development of our plans for the second phase. As you know, last December I asked the Higher School of Economics and the National Economy Academy to think how this work can be set up.

Their proposals were included in a government directive which I have signed today. We plan to create several expert groups and charge them with working out recommendations for the socioeconomic strategy from 2012 to 2020. I'd like Mr Shuvalov to make a list of expert groups and their heads and submit it to the government within three days. You have fourteen days to adopt the lists of members of these groups. The government will review the progress made on the development of expert proposals every quarter. We expect them to present a preliminary report to the government in August 2011 and a final report in December 2011.

I would like Deputy Prime Minister Vyacheslav Volodin to organise government meetings to discuss this issue and do everything necessary to promote closer interaction between federal executive bodies and expert groups. I am asking each member of the government, in particular deputy prime ministers, and regional leaders to provide the necessary assistance to the expert groups. I also expect the Russian Academy of Science to participate. I am charging First Deputy Prime Minister Shuvalov with coordinating this work.

In order to ensure stable development and increase Russia's competitiveness in the post-recessionary world, we need to develop a comprehensive action plan and select several projects to focus on over the long term. I'd like to underscore that we have every opportunity to make our economy steady and stable and must take advantage of our competitive edge.

Now let’s turn to the agenda. First, I would like to address support for high-tech business. In 2009, we empowered Russia’s higher education institutions and research centres to open small innovation enterprises. Any proceeds from selling their products would go to their authorised capital. We did this to foster an environment of innovation in the country, to give higher education institutions and research centres a way to hold on to valuable personnel, and to create sought-after and interesting jobs for current students, graduates and post-graduate students. These enterprises have been afforded a wide range of preferences. For example, they are free to use the simplified tax system. We have also allowed them a smooth gradual transition to new insurance premium rates for them: they will pay 14% instead of 34% from 2011 to 2017.  

I would also like to touch on another measure to support innovative businesses. We have discussed this before. Small and medium-sized enterprises will be able to lease premises at the higher education institutions and research centres they are attached to. The leasing terms are preferential, on a no-bid basis, and this will naturally lower the cost of leasing the space. Amendments to the legislation to that effect must be ready in the first quarter of this year. Work on them is more or less complete.  

This decision will help small businesses get up and running faster, and build up their material foundation for production and experimentation. They won’t have to waste time competing with shops and car dealerships for square metres. This idea of granting higher education institutions and research centres greater independence has proved successful.  In just one year, more than 700 new innovation enterprises were founded and began operating.  Some 707 such enterprises were registered as of January 15, 2011.

That being said, I am convinced that we must continue to develop the intellectual property market and create conditions for successful commercialisation of technological innovations. We have been investing large amounts of federal funds in research and development to achieve the larger goals of improving the economy and life in Russia, boosting tax revenues, developing new products and services, and creating new prestigious and well-paid jobs. And we cannot let the results of scientific research stand idle. That’s why the Ministry of Education and Science has been charged with developing concrete proposals on removing barriers to the use of intellectual property created using federal funds.   

Today we will consider a draft law that will lift a number of restrictions on small businesses set up at research institutes and universities and empower them to transfer the right to use the results of their intellectual activity to third parties. What this means in practice is that small innovative enterprises will be able to perfect their know-how and technological innovations and then attract business partners and investments to promote them – in short, to begin mass producing their innovations and pave their way to the market.

Today I want to focus on one other issue related to the development of small and medium-sized business. At my meetings with businessmen, they often ask for better access to government procurement contracts. It has been difficult for small companies so far. Small and medium-sized businesses play an important social and economic role in the country. And it is in the interests of the federal government to support them with budget funds and by increasing the number of orders they receive from companies with government participation. We have already reduced from 5% to 2% the deposit small businesses have to put up at the auctions for government procurement contracts. The Ministry of Economic Development has prepared a draft law regulating procurements by state-run corporations, natural monopolies and utilities. The law is designed to establish clear and transparent rules on markets for goods and services. And I would like to ask the minister not to overlook small businesses when finalising the draft. As we were just discussing, we need to empower the government to adjust the features of procurement orders that major companies with government participation place with small and medium-sized enterprises.  

And finally, today we will consider a draft law to ratify the Russian-Norwegian treaty on delimiting maritime borders and cooperation in the Barents Sea and the Arctic Ocean. Negotiations with our partners from Norway on this matter were difficult and lasted for 40 years. To be frank, we reached impasses from time to time, but ultimately we found solutions to these problems and completed work on the treaty. So now we must use this treaty to make further progress, but first, of course, the treaty must pass through the proper channels in the government. This treaty will no doubt foster trust in the Arctic region and create additional opportunities to pursue joint economic projects and to develop the Arctic’s natural resources in a responsible and environmentally sound way. As you know, we are working together with our partners on the Shtokman field in the Barents Sea. And quite recently Rosneft and BP, one of the world largest companies, entered into a strategic partnership to develop the Arctic’s resources.

They will form a joint venture to explore and develop oil and gas fields in the Kara Sea. This is a very serious and long-term project involving billions in investments. And tens of billions more will likely be invested in the future. Likewise, the amount of the resources, roughly 10,000 billion cubic meters of gas and 5 billion tones of oil (I hope that these reserves will be confirmed and then reclassified as resources) – these reserves are enormous and vital to the world economy.

In addition, a special Centre for Arctic Technologies is being established to jointly explore and estimate the reserves of hydrocarbons in the Arctic shelf.

Let’s begin our discussion.