After the meeting, Mr Zhukov told journalists that no funds from the Federal Budget will be allocated for preparations for the Olympics in Sochi in 2009-2010. 

He said that the Organising Committee's efforts to attract sponsors had enabled it to receive significantly greater financial resources than originally planned. Mr Zhukov explained: "Therefore we decided today that in 2009-2010 the Organising Committee will not be subsidised by the federal budget. In effect during these two years the federal budget will save 2.7 billion roubles."

The Deputy Prime Minister continued: "Despite the complicated economic conditions today in the country, we are seeing serious interest in the Olympics among sponsors and investors." He said that today, thanks to investors' resources "the Organising Committee has a significant financial surplus of 4 billion roubles."

Mr Zhukov also said that the State will continue to meet its obligations to the International Olympic Committee in the future, and that from 2011 will again allocate funds to Olympic projects from the budget.

In turn, Mr Kozak said that thanks to the streamlining of expenses for the preparation of the Olympic projects, further budgetary savings would be realised all the way through 2014. He said: "In spite of these difficult times, we have succeeded in creating conditions attractive for businessmen, for new investors. Thanks to these efforts we will be able to save the federal budget no less than 20 billion roubles from 2009 to 2014."
The Deputy Prime Minister added that the construction projects in the Imereti Valley that were to be financed exclusively from the federal budget, could now be financed by investors. Mr Kozak noted that the new funicular would also be built using only investors' money.

Mr Zhukov also said that today's meeting discussed questions related to the environmental strategy for the Olympic Games. He said: "The 2014 Olympics should become a model for eco-friendly Olympics, which will be held in harmony with nature."