Dear colleagues, good afternoon!
Our meeting is attended by heads of the
Government, plenipotentiaries of the
President in federal districts, heads of
Russian regions.
We are meeting at a difficult time when our
Armed Forces are conducting a special
military operation in Ukraine and Donbas. Let
me remind you that at the very beginning, in
the early morning of February 24, I publicly
and openly named the reasons and the main
goal of Russia's actions. This is the help to
our people in the Donbass, who for almost
eight years by the most barbaric methods -
blockade, large-scale punitive actions,
terrorist attacks and constant artillery
shelling - were subjected to real genocide.
And for what? Only because they sought
elementary human rights - to live according
to the laws and traditions of their ancestors,
to speak their native language, to raise their
children the way they want.
At the same time, the Kiev authorities not
only ignored, sabotaged throughout all these
years the implementation of the Minsk
Package of Measures for the Peaceful
Settlement of the Crisis, but at the end of last
year they even publicly refused to implement
it.
They have also begun the practical
implementation of plans to join NATO.
Moreover, there were also statements by the
Kiev authorities about their intention to
create now their own nuclear weapons and
their delivery vehicles. It was a real threat.
Already in the foreseeable future, with
foreign technical assistance, the pro-Nazi
regime in Kyiv could get its hands on
weapons of mass destruction, and the target
for it, of course, would be Russia.
In Ukraine, there was also a network of
dozens of laboratories, where, under the
direction and financial support of the
Pentagon, military biological programs were
carried out, including experiments with
samples of coronavirus, anthrax, cholera,
African swine fever and other deadly
diseases. The traces of these secret
programs are now strenuously trying to cover
up. But we have every reason to believe that
in the immediate vicinity of Russia, on the
territory of Ukraine, in fact, components of
biological weapons were created.
Our repeated warnings that such a
development poses a direct threat to
Russia's security have been dismissed by
Ukraine, their patrons from the US and NATO,
and with ostentatious and cynical disdain.
Thus, all diplomatic possibilities were
completely exhausted. We were simply left
with no options to peacefully solve problems
that arise through no fault of ours. And in this
regard, we were simply forced to launch a
special military operation.
The appearance of Russian troops near Kiev
and other cities of Ukraine is not connected
with the intention to occupy this country. We
do not have such a goal, and I also directly
stated this in my address on February 24.
As for the tactics of military operations,
which was developed by the Russian Ministry
of Defense and our General Staff, it has fully
justified itself. And our guys - soldiers and
officers - show courage and heroism, do
everything in their power to avoid losses
among the civilian population of Ukrainian
cities.
I want to say this for the first time: at the very
beginning of the operation in Donbas, the
Kiev authorities, through various channels, in
order to avoid senseless bloodshed, were
asked not to engage in hostilities, but simply
to withdraw their troops from Donbass. They
didn't want to. Well, it's their decision.
Awareness of what is happening in a real
situation, on earth, will inevitably come.
The operation is developing successfully, in
strict accordance with pre-approved plans.
I note that Ukraine, encouraged by the
United States and a number of Western
countries, purposefully prepared for a
scenario of force, bloody massacre and
ethnic cleansing in the Donbass. A massive
attack on the Donbass and then on the
Crimea was only a matter of time. And our
Armed Forces thwarted these plans.
In Kyiv, they were not only preparing for war,
for aggression against Russia, against the
Donbass - they were waging it. Attempts to
organize sabotage and terrorist underground
did not stop. In recent years, hostilities have
continued in the Donbass, shelling of
peaceful settlements. During this time,
almost 14,000 civilians died, including
children.
On March 14, as you know, a rocket attack
was carried out in the center of Donetsk. It
was an outright bloody terrorist attack that
claimed the lives of more than 20 people.
And such shelling continues all the last days.
They bomb indiscriminately, in the squares,
with fanaticism and frenzy of the doomed -
like the Nazis, who in the last days of the
Third Reich tried to drag as many innocent
victims as possible with them to the grave.
But what strikes with its transcendent
cynicism is not only the shameless lies of
Kyiv, the statements that it was Russia
(thought of it!) allegedly launched a rocket at
Donetsk, but also the fact that the so-called
civilized Western world, the European and
American press did not even notice the
tragedy of Donetsk, as if nothing had
happened.
It was just as hypocritically that they averted
their eyes for the last eight years, when
mothers in the Donbass buried their children.
When old people were killed. It's just some
kind of moral degradation, complete
dehumanization.
Long-term mockery of the inhabitants of
Donbass could no longer be tolerated. And in
order to put an end to the genocide, Russia
recognized the people's republics of
Donbass, concluded treaties of friendship
and mutual assistance with them. Based on
these agreements, the republics turned to
our country for military assistance in
repelling aggression. And we provided this
assistance - we simply could not, we had no
right to do otherwise.
But what I want to emphasize and ask you to
pay attention to is that if our troops acted
only on the territory of the people's
republics, helped them liberate their land,
this would not be the final decision, would
not lead to peace and would not eliminate the
threat at the root - for our countries, already
for Russia. On the contrary, a new front line
would have been laid around the Donbass
and along its borders, shelling and
provocations would have continued. That is,
the armed conflict would drag on endlessly,
fueled by the revanchist hysteria of the Kiev
regime, and the NATO military infrastructure
in Ukraine would be deployed even faster and
more aggressively: we would be faced with
the fact that the strike, offensive weapons of
the Alliance are already at our borders.
I repeat - we had no other option for self-
defense, for ensuring the security of Russia,
except for conducting a special military
operation. And all the tasks set, of course,
will be solved. We will reliably ensure the
security of Russia and our people and will
never allow Ukraine to serve as a springboard
for aggressive actions against our country.
It is precisely the issues of principle for
Russia, for our future - on the neutral status
of Ukraine, on demilitarization and
denazification - that we were ready and are
ready to discuss now in the course of
negotiations. Our country has done
everything to organize and conduct these
negotiations, realizing that it is necessary to
use every opportunity to save people and
their lives.
But we are convinced again and again that
the Kiev regime, which its Western masters
have set the task of creating an aggressive
anti-Russia, is indifferent to the fate of the
people of Ukraine themselves. The fact that
people are dying, that hundreds of
thousands, millions have become refugees,
that a real humanitarian catastrophe is taking
place in the cities held by neo-Nazis and
their armed criminals, released from prisons,
is all indifferent.
It is also obvious to us that Western patrons
are simply pushing the Kiev authorities to
continue the bloodshed. They are being
supplied with new batches of weapons,
intelligence, and other assistance, including
the deployment of military advisers and
mercenaries.
They also chose economic, financial, trade,
and other sanctions against Russia as
weapons, which are now hitting the
Europeans and Americans themselves, by the
way, through rising prices for gasoline,
energy, food, through the loss of jobs
associated with the Russian market. And
there is no need here, as they say, to shift
from a sick head to a healthy one, blaming
our country for everything.
I want ordinary citizens of Western countries
to hear me too: they are now persistently
trying to convince you that all your difficulties
are the result of some hostile actions of
Russia, that you have to pay for the fight
against the mythical Russian threat from your
own wallet. All this is a lie.
And the truth is that the current problems
faced by millions of people in the West are
the result of many years of actions by the
ruling elites of their states, their mistakes,
myopia and ambitions. These elites are not
thinking about how to improve the lives of
their citizens in Western countries. They are
obsessed with their own vested interests and
super profits.
Evidence of this is the data of international
organizations, which directly say that social
problems, even in leading Western countries,
have only worsened in recent years, that
inequality is growing, the gap between rich
and poor, racial and national conflicts are
making themselves felt. The myth of the
Western welfare society, of the so-called
golden billion, is collapsing.
I repeat, today the entire planet has to pay
the price precisely for the ambitions of the
West, for its attempts by any means to
maintain its elusive dominance.
The imposition of sanctions is a logical
continuation, a concentrated expression of
the irresponsible, short-sighted policy of the
governments and central banks of the US
and EU countries. It was they who, in recent
years, with their own hands dispersed the
spiral of global inflation, with their actions led
to an increase in global poverty and
inequality, to new flows of refugees around
the world. And the question arises: who is
now responsible for the millions of starvation
deaths in the world's poorest countries due
to the growing food shortage?
I repeat, a serious blow has been dealt to the
entire global economy and trade, to
confidence and to the US dollar as the main
reserve currency.
Thus, illegitimate actions to freeze part of the
Bank of Russia's foreign exchange reserves
draw a line under the reliability of the so-
called first-class assets. In fact, both the US
and the EU have declared a real default on
their obligations to Russia. Now everyone
knows that financial reserves can simply be
stolen. And seeing this, many countries in
the near future can begin - I'm sure this will
happen - to convert their paper and digital
savings into real reserves in the form of
commodities, land, food, gold, and other real
assets, which will only increase the deficit in
these markets.
I will add that the seizure of foreign assets,
accounts of Russian companies and
individuals is a lesson for national business,
that there is nothing more reliable than
investing in your own country. I have spoken
about this personally on several occasions.
We appreciate the position of those foreign
companies that, despite shameless pressure
from the United States and its vassals,
continue to work in our country. In the
future, they will certainly receive additional
opportunities for development.
We also know those who cowardly betrayed
their partners, forgot about their
responsibility to employees and clients in
Russia, and hastened to earn illusory
dividends by participating in the anti-Russian
campaign. At the same time, unlike Western
countries, we will respect property rights.
What do I want to highlight? We must clearly
understand that a new package of sanctions
and restrictions against us would have
followed in any eventuality. I want to
emphasize this. For the West, our military
operation in Ukraine is just a pretext for new
sanctions. Yes, of course, they are now
concentrated. But in the same way [the
occasion] was for them, for Westerners, the
referendum in Crimea, which, by the way,
took place on March 16, 2014, exactly eight
years ago, during which Crimeans and
Sevastopol residents made their free choice -
to be together with their historical homeland.
I repeat: it's just about reasons. But the
policy of containment, weakening Russia,
including through economic isolation, a
blockade, is a conscious, long-term strategy.
The leaders of the West themselves no
longer hide the fact that the sanctions are
not directed against individuals or
companies, their goal is to strike at our entire
domestic economy, our social and
humanitarian sphere, every family, every
citizen of Russia.
In fact, such steps aimed at worsening the
lives of millions of people have all the signs
of aggression, war by economic, political,
and informational means. It has a total,
undisguised character, and, I repeat, the so-
called Western political beau monde does not
even hesitate to speak about it in plain text.
All verbal tinsel about political correctness,
inviolability of private property, freedom of
speech - all this flew off overnight. Even the
Olympic principles were trampled on. They
did not hesitate to settle scores with the
Paralympic athletes - this is such a “sport
outside of politics”.
In many Western countries, people are
subjected to real persecution just because
they come from Russia: they refuse medical
care, expel children from schools, deprive
their parents of their jobs, ban Russian
music, culture, and literature. Trying to
"cancel" Russia, the West tore off all the
masks of decency, began to act boorishly,
demonstrated its true nature. It just begs a
direct analogy with the anti-Semitic pogroms
that the Nazis staged in Germany in the 30s
of the last century, and then their henchmen
from many European countries who joined
Hitler's aggression against our country
during the Great Patriotic War.
A massive attack has also been launched
against Russia in cyberspace. An
unprecedented information campaign has
been unleashed, which involves global social
networks and all Western media, the
objectivity and independence of which
turned out to be just a myth. Access to
information is limited, people are stuffed with
a huge number of fakes, propaganda
forgeries, in other words, linden. It got to the
point that one of the American social
networks directly announced the possibility
of publications calling for the murder of
Russian citizens.
We understand what resources this empire of
lies has, but it is still powerless against truth
and justice. Russia will consistently bring its
position to the attention of the whole world.
And our position is honest and open, and
more and more people hear, understand and
share it.
I want to be very frank: behind the
hypocritical talk and today's actions of the
so-called collective West, there are hostile
geopolitical goals. They do not need, they
simply do not need a strong and sovereign
Russia, they will not forgive us either our
independent course or the fact that we are
defending our national interests.
We remember how they supported
separatism, terrorism, encouraging terrorists
and bandits in the North Caucasus. As in the
1990s - early 2000s, they now again, once
again want to repeat their attempt to put the
squeeze on us, put some pressure on us, as
they say, drive beyond Mozhai, as people say,
turn into a weak, dependent country, violate
the territorial integrity, dismember Russia in
the best possible way for them. It didn't
work out then, and it won't work out now.
Yes, of course, they will try to bet on the so-
called fifth column, on national traitors, on
those who earn money here, with us, but live
there, and “live” not even in the geographical
sense of the word, but in their own way.
thoughts, in his slavish consciousness.
I am not at all judging those who have a villa
in Miami or the French Riviera, who cannot do
without foie gras, oysters or so-called gender
freedoms. The problem is absolutely not in
this, but, I repeat, in the fact that many of
these people, by their very nature, are
mentally located precisely there, and not
here, not with our people, not with Russia.
This is what they think - in their opinion! - a
sign of belonging to a higher caste, to a
higher race. Such people are ready to sell
their own mother, if only they were allowed to
sit in the hallway of this very highest caste.
They want to be like her, imitating her in every
possible way. But they forget or do not
understand at all that if they are needed by
this so-called higher caste, then as a
consumable material in order to use them to
inflict maximum damage on our people.
The collective West is trying to split our
society, speculating on military losses, on the
socio-economic consequences of sanctions,
to provoke a civil confrontation in Russia and,
using its fifth column, is striving to achieve
its goal. And there is only one goal, I have
already spoken about this, the destruction of
Russia.
But any people, and even more so the
Russian people, will always be able to
distinguish true patriots from scum and
traitors and simply spit them out like a midge
that accidentally flew into their mouths, spit
them out on the panel. I am convinced that
such a natural and necessary self-
purification of society will only strengthen
our country, our solidarity, cohesion and
readiness to respond to any challenges.
The so-called collective West and its fifth
column are accustomed to measuring
everything and everyone by themselves.
They believe that everything is for sale and
everything is bought, and therefore they
think that we will break down, retreat. But
they do not know our history and our people
well.
Yes, many countries in the world have long
resigned themselves to living with their backs
bent and obsequiously accepting all the
decisions of their sovereign, looking
obsequiously into his eyes. This is how many
countries live. Unfortunately, also in Europe.
But Russia will never be in such a miserable
and humiliated state, and the struggle we are
waging is a struggle for our sovereignty, for
the future of our country and our children.
We will fight for the right to be and remain
Russia. An example for us is the courage and
steadfastness of our soldiers and officers,
the faithful defenders of the Fatherland.
Dear colleagues!
It is obvious that the current events are
drawing a line under the global dominance of
Western countries both in politics and in the
economy. Moreover, they call into question
the economic model that in recent decades
has been imposed on developing countries,
and indeed on the whole world.
Let me emphasize that the obsession with
sanctions by the United States and its
supporters is not shared by countries where
more than half of the world's population lives.
It is these states that represent the fastest
growing, most promising part of the global
economy. Among them is Russia.
Yes, it's hard for us right now. Russian
financial companies, large enterprises, small
and medium-sized businesses are facing
unprecedented pressure.
The banking system was the first to be hit by
sanctions, but Russian banks coped with this
challenge. Working literally around the clock,
they continue to make payments and
settlements of citizens, to ensure the
activities of enterprises.
The second wave of sanctions was intended
to provoke a panic in the trade sphere.
According to estimates, over the past three
weeks, additional demand for goods has
exceeded a trillion rubles. But domestic
manufacturers, suppliers, transport and
logistics companies have done everything to
avoid large-scale shortages in retail chains.
I want to express my gratitude to the
business community of Russia, the workforce
of companies, banks and organizations that
not only provide an effective response to
sanctions challenges, but also lay the
foundation for the further sustainable
development of our economy. And I want to
separately mention the Government, the
Bank of Russia, the heads of the subjects of
the Federation, regional and municipal teams.
In the current difficult conditions, you
responsibly solve the tasks facing you.
It is obvious that it was not possible to
organize an economic blitzkrieg against
Russia, to demoralize our society, to take us
in a rush, so we will certainly see attempts to
increase pressure on our country. But we will
overcome these difficulties. The Russian
economy will definitely adapt to new realities.
We will strengthen our technological and
scientific sovereignty, allocate additional
resources to support agriculture,
manufacturing, infrastructure, housing
construction, and continue to develop foreign
trade relations with a view to fast-growing,
dynamic international markets.
Undoubtedly, the new realities will require
deep structural changes in our economy, and
I will not hide it, they will not be easy, they
will lead to a temporary increase in inflation
and unemployment.
In this situation, our task is to minimize such
risks. Not only to strictly fulfill all social
obligations of the state, but also to launch
new, more effective mechanisms to support
citizens and their incomes.
The focus is on the protection of
motherhood, childhood, support for families
with children. A decision has already been
made - you know about it - from April 1 to
introduce payments for children from 8 to 16
years old inclusive, who grow up in families
with low incomes. The amount of the
payment will be from half to one subsistence
minimum for each child of this age. Now the
average for the country is up to 12,300
rubles. Thus, we will build a unified support
system from the moment when the expectant
mother is still waiting for the birth of the
child, and until the child reaches 17 years of
age.
I instruct the Government to ensure the
operation of this system in such a way that it
promptly takes into account changes in the
financial situation of families. That is, if
parents are faced with the loss of a job, other
difficult life circumstances, the family should
start receiving assistance from the state as
quickly as possible.
I also ask the Government to quickly analyze
the effectiveness of measures to support
people who have lost their jobs. It is obvious
that such measures should be expanded,
including through the mechanism of the
social contract.
I understand that rising prices are seriously
affecting people’s incomes, so in the near
future we will make a decision to increase all
social benefits, including benefits and
pensions, raise the minimum wage and the
subsistence level, and also increase salaries
in the public sector. I ask the Government to
calculate the exact parameters of such an
increase.
And I would like to emphasize that even in
the current difficult situation, at the end of
the year, we need to achieve a reduction in
the level of poverty and inequality. This is a
very feasible task even today. I ask the
Government and the regions to concentrate
on this task. And I will add that it is not only
of an economic nature, you and I understand,
but is also a matter of social justice.
A lot now depends on the initiative of the
leaders of the subjects of the Federation, on
their readiness to take responsibility. Today I
signed a decree on additional powers of the
heads of regions - they will be able to make
flexible and prompt decisions to support our
citizens, the economy, and the social sphere
based on the real situation on the ground.
Let me remind you that it was in this logic,
which allows us to take into account the
situation in each region, in the city, in the
village – and it is different everywhere – that
is how we built measures to combat the
coronavirus.
I instruct all departments of federal
authorities in the constituent entities of the
Federation to coordinate their work with
regional authorities in the next six months,
and the governors to create operational
headquarters to ensure economic
development and personally lead this work.
What should be the priority here?
A key role in overcoming current problems
should be played by private business, which
is able to rebuild logistics in a short time, find
new suppliers, and increase the production
of products in demand. How quickly private
business will find the right decisions, make
them, depends on the preservation of
employment, income and salaries of citizens,
in general, ensuring a stable, rhythmic work
of the economy. Therefore, we must respond
to external pressure with maximum
entrepreneurial freedom and support for
business initiative.
I ask the Government, law enforcement
agencies, supervisory authorities to continue
to work on removing unjustified
administrative and regulatory barriers.
Moreover, it is impossible to distract
business and regional authorities from
solving the most acute, urgent tasks, loading
them with all sorts of checks and control
measures.
One of the key problems for enterprises now
is the lack of working capital, the
unavailability and high cost of loans, but the
Central Bank was forced to take appropriate
measures. In this regard, I instruct to
implement the following steps.
First. Enterprises that fulfill orders from
government authorities and companies with
state participation should receive money for
the delivered goods and services as soon as
possible, put them back into business. In this
regard, I propose to increase the amount of
advance payments under government
contracts. The advance payment must be at
least half of the total amount of the contract,
and the payment term for the delivered
goods and services shall be reduced to
seven working days. A similar decision must
also be made at the level of subjects of the
Federation, municipalities and companies
with state participation.
Second. It is necessary to expand the
opportunities for entrepreneurs to attract
additional resources from development
institutions. We are talking about expanding
the work of the “Project Finance Factory” (it
works for us, and it works well, practice has
shown that it is in demand), about providing
resources for business investment plans
through the Industry Development Fund (one
of the really well-functioning instruments),
the Bank for Small and Medium Enterprises
also, and in addition, through regional
support institutions, including guarantee
funds. I instruct the Government to allocate
additional funds to the subjects of the
Federation for such regional instruments.
I draw the attention of the Government and
colleagues in the regions: the most important
task is to ensure the availability of goods on
the consumer market, first of all, I mean
essential goods, medicines and medical
products. It is necessary to quickly solve
logistical and other objective problems that
lead to price surges. At the same time, it is
necessary to exclude manual intervention in
price regulation. It is the increase in supply
that should lead to a decrease and
stabilization of prices.
Separately, I would like to address our
exporters. In a situation where there are
difficulties with deliveries to foreign markets,
it is necessary not to reduce production, but,
on the contrary, to send additional volumes
of goods to the domestic market. This
should objectively lead to a reduction in
prices within the country, including for
gasoline, diesel, bitumen, metals, and other
export goods. I ask the Government and the
Federal Antimonopoly Service, regional
authorities to constantly monitor the situation
in these markets.
Further. Given the new challenges that
Russia is facing, we must maintain and
expand our long-term development agenda,
including continuing the implementation of all
planned projects, both at the federal and
regional levels. We must fully utilize the
potential of our budget system as an
incentive tool.
Federal financing of projects and
construction projects will be carried out, as
agreed, in full. Moreover, back in December,
it was decided to allocate additional funds -
in the event that the cost of construction
objectively increased.
What I consider important to note is that in
the current situation there will be no
problems with funding from the federal
budget. Our economy today generates a
sufficient, good amount of income, which
means that we will not need to resort to
emission. Simply put, the Central Bank will
not need to print money. We have incomes –
marketable, healthy incomes. The problem
now is not money. We have resources, I
repeat. Key difficulties are related to the
supply of components, equipment, building
materials, and the organization of the work of
contractors. Therefore, the timing and
methods of implementing specific projects,
their stages may change, and this will require
the coordinated work of authorities and
business representatives, the accelerated
implementation of import substitution
projects - this is what is important.
At the same time, it is important to simplify
the procedure for interaction between
regions and federal authorities, to give the
subjects of the Federation more freedom in
maneuvering resources, as well as
opportunities to launch new construction
projects and programs.
Thus, additional funds have already been
allocated to the regions for road
construction. I ask the Government to work
out the issue of increasing funding for other
infrastructure facilities that can be put into
operation this year, as well as increasing
purchases from Russian enterprises,
including for upgrading public transport, for
example.
It is clear that the budgets of the constituent
entities of the Federation are now under a
serious additional burden, therefore, as
agreed, we will additionally index subsidies to
equalize budgetary security. We are also
using other measures to support regional
finances, namely, all payments on budget
loans planned for the current year will be
deferred, shifted, as they say, to the right,
and payments on commercial loans, where
necessary, will be replaced by budget loans.
I ask the Government to study this issue in
detail and delve into each specific case. Only
such individual work will lead to the desired
result.
In addition, the Ministry of Finance will
additionally provide an unconditional credit
line to each constituent entity of the Russian
Federation. It will amount to ten percent of
the total income with a maturity date not
earlier than the end of the current year.
We will maintain the volume of infrastructure
budget loans. I instruct the Government to
organize flexible management of this
program, to take into account all the
difficulties associated with the
implementation of projects - I have already
mentioned them a little higher. Regions
should be able to quickly make decisions on
changing the portfolio and content of
projects, focus on those that can be
implemented with maximum efficiency in the
current conditions. If necessary, we will
consider a possible increase in the volume of
infrastructure loans. It's possible, it can be
done. In general, we will closely monitor the
situation with regional finances and make
additional decisions to support them, if
necessary.
Let me emphasize that direct
communications between all levels of
government and a clear algorithm of actions
are of fundamental importance now. And here
the State Council and its specialized
commissions have already proved their
effectiveness. I am asking the public
administration commission, headed by Sergei
Semyonovich Sobyanin, to work on
problematic issues on the regional agenda
together with our colleagues from the
Government, develop optimal solutions and
scale them up to all Russian regions. We had
good experience in the fight against the
epidemic.
Dear colleagues!
Our economy, state budget, private business
have all the necessary resources to solve
long-term tasks. All strategic, national goals
that we have set for the period up to 2030
must be achieved. The current challenges
and the opportunities they open up should
only mobilize us - that's what we should set
ourselves up for, aim to achieve tangible
results in the interests of citizens.
Obviously, we will need to fine-tune our
programs, and here the initiatives of business
circles, scientists, and public associations
are in demand. In this regard, I ask the
regions to actively join in organizing the
forum of the Agency for Strategic Initiatives
“Strong Ideas for the New Times”, within
which every citizen of Russia will be able to
present their proposals, specific projects
aimed at developing their city, region and
country as a whole.
I repeat once again: the current situation is,
of course, a test for all of us. I am sure that
we will pass it with dignity, through hard
work, joint work and mutual support we will
overcome all difficulties and become even
stronger, as it has always been in the history
of thousand-year-old Russia. It is for this, for
this kind of work, that I want to set you up.