Viktor Zubkov's opening remarks:

'Let us continue discussing wildfire prevention measures in Russia. We have already had meetings in this format on the problem.

As you know, the Russian government made decisions to improve our legislation, to finance wildfire-fighting, and to procure additional fire-fighting equipment.

We have adopted regulations for declaring a state of emergency in the event of wildfires; for cooperation between all bodies of power in emergency situations; for the development and adoption of a plan for putting out forest fires; for the drafting of a combined plan for putting out forest fires; and for subsidies to regional budgets from the Federal Forestry Agency for major construction projects.

A list of manufacturers of wildfire-fighting equipment has been approved. They shall be recognised as our sole suppliers. The regions are to receive 1,470 pieces of fire-fighting equipment. Wildfire-fighting measures have been extended, such as the determination of the order of installation and use of barriers, fire extinction basins, and the clearing of forest cuttings and popular paths. The Provisions for State Forest Control and Supervision and for State Forest Fire Supervision have been amended. They will be no longer carried out by the Federal Service for Veterinary and Phytosanitary Surveillance, but by the Federal Forestry Agency. In addition, regulations have been adopted for the use of assets in resolving emergency situations resulting from wildfires.

I would like to note separately that the system of interregional cooperation in fighting wildfires is fully operational.

In 2011, 36 billion roubles (as compared to 20,7 billion roubles in 2010) were allocated from the federal budget for forest management, 10 billion of which (2,2 billion in 2010) were directed at wildfire prevention measures.

I'd like to stress that the government has taken all possible measures to help the regions prevent and put out forest fires.

Now everything depends on the regions. Our success in fighting wildfires depends entirely on their work. Unfortunately, the heads of some regions ignore this. The Russian regions and constituent entities must take a more active part in the implementation of fire-fighting measures.

We must advocate better care of our forests and environment on behalf of citizens and municipalities. More than 90% of all fires are caused by people. We must provide for the use of fire-fighting equipment and aircraft, as well as increase the effectiveness of a multi-levelled response to wildfires. We must also set up wildfire-fighting facilities and ensure that a state of emergency is declared in a timely manner. We should restrict access to forests, increase the efficiency of fire-fighting control stations, and involve voluntary fire-fighting squads as well as the population at large in the timely detection and elimination of fires.

I will ask the Moscow regional authorities to report to me on the progress of peat rewetting. I am interested in their achievements since our previous meeting, including the exact size of the rewetted areas and their work schedule.'

The teleconference focused on the implementation of measures taken by the Russian government to increase the effectiveness of wildfire prevention and elimination through the introduction of new equipment and financial resources.

The heads of 83 regions participated in the teleconference. The National Centre for Crisis Management put a direct connection through to the heads of the Sakha Republic, Krasnoyarsk Territory, and the Amur, Novgorod and Moscow Regions.