Transcript of the beginning of the meeting:

Vladimir Putin: Good afternoon.

Andrei Fursenko: Mr Putin, you gave a number of directives on the development of a scientific and technical sector and a state-owned sector for research and development. Some tasks have already been achieved; in particular, there have been some delays in the funding of infrastructure development for nanotechnology industry. By now all those problems have been solved. The financing has begun. We have signed the federal targeted programme Scientific Students Human Resource. We have started preparing for competitions so that financing could commence at the beginning of next year.

In addition, the meeting of the High Technology Commission led by Sergei Ivanov is scheduled for the end of August. It will consider a draft government resolution on improving the performance of government-financed research organisations. If the government resolution is approved - and we believe it will - then we can substantially streamline the performance of the state-controlled sector of science, taking into account that we together with the Federal Service for State Statistics (Rosstat) are completing an inventory of all state-owned research organisations.

I would like to inform you in more detail about the structure we have today and what we need to do to reform it and make it much more effective. We believe the new upgraded structure will allow us to make more effective use of the considerable funds the government is allocating today on the development of science.

Vladimir Putin: Well, we will talk about it in detail, but first I would like to talk about something else. You know that unfortunately Alexander Solzhenitsyn, a great Russian writer, died the day before yesterday. This is one of those people who suffered, together with our entire nation, through the great tragedy of repression. But he not only lived through this tragedy, he also "vaccinated" our society against tyranny in all its manifestations through his work and his life because he was a great statesman and public figure. In this sense he was a prominent figure. I think that his works should take a well-deserved place in the educational curriculum at both general secondary and higher schools.

I ask you to think about it and make corresponding proposals. I know that to a certain extent his works are studied in schools, but in my view, this is not enough.

Andrei Fursenko: I see. We are working in this area. «One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich», which has become a classic, is part of school literature courses. In addition, Solzhenitsyn's works are studied as documentary evidence as part of history courses. But I see your point and agree with you that his role is more important than that reflected in curriculum today.

Then, with your permission, we will examine the new standards, which are being developed today and we will make necessary amendments to educational curriculum so that Alexander Solzhenitsyn's life, views and works be adequately represented in literature, history and social science courses.