One of the interviewer’s questions concerned the agriculture industry. Mr Dvorkovich said that the outgoing year saw a breakthrough in the industry, with Russia joining the World Trade Organisation, which will open foreign markets to Russian food exports.

Commenting on analysts’ fears of the emergence of a monopoly in the oil market following Rosneft’s purchase of TNK-BP, he said that the Government would continue to monitor the market and take relevant steps in that case.

When asked about the problems of single-industry towns, the Deputy Prime Minister said that the authorities would continue to address them next year. One of the ways to improve their life is restructuring and diversifying production to create new jobs in towns surrounding the Baikal pulp-and-paper plant, the Bogoslovsky aluminium plant in the Sverdlovsk Region, and other problem-laden industrial behemoths.

Highway construction was also mentioned. Mr Dvorkovich said it was hampered by Russia’s slow transition from outdated standards, rampant pilfering and bribery, and the high costs of land purchased for road construction.