He thanked those who had voted for him as well as those who supported other candidates. “In any event this is an important result and the information material for me and for future state authorities. We will take into account the opinions of political opponents who received their votes,” Mr. Putin declared. According to him, one can already say that the election results are satisfactory.

The President also emphasized that he had decided not carry out a special election campaign deliberately. "The result was important for me. A possible result could have been higher if there had been a special campaign. I did not do it deliberately. It was important to see how people reacted to real work, not to election tricks. I have been working intensively and honestly over the past 4 years. People could not fail to feel this," he said.

Mr. Putin stressed that he “has determined the formula of the art of politics; this is the happy medium between something that is necessary and something that is possible”. The head of state also noted that stability that the Russian government was longing for was a necessary condition, while the objective was to increase the prosperity of people. According to the President, the country will be modernized drastically; at the same time he assured people that “the Russian government will try to discuss every step so that people could understand what is being done and why”.

The President also promised to work as hard during the next four years in office as he did during his first term in office. At the same time he stressed that he was going to make the government work the same way.

Mr. Putin pointed out that democratic achievements should be retained in Russia. He added that new state authorities were going to continue policies aimed at providing economic stability. Stability is necessary to achieve real prosperity of the Russian people, he emphasized.

The head of state pointed out that Russia would long to provide guarantees of national security in its foreign policies. "We will be flexible in partnership trying to achieve compromises suitable for us and our partners," he said. According to Mr. Putin, this is necessary to maintain stability in the world.

The priorities of Russian foreign policies are not "to demonstrate ambitions of an empire character" but to provide favorable external conditions for Russia's development, the President declared.

According to Mr. Putin, Moscow will work with the USA, the European Union, Asian states (China and India) and other countries. With the appointment of Sergey Lavrov to the position of the Foreign Minister of Russia, who has experience of working with the UN, and taking into account everything that has been made by former minister Igor Ivanov Russia will be able to create “an efficient instrument of its foreign policies”, Putin said.

Speaking about domestic policies the President said that the priorities were the development of a multiparty system and strengthening of democratic institutions. "Parties of the federal level should have real power in regions and they should influence central authorities from these regions", he said. Mr. Putin also thinks that institutions of the civil society should be strengthened.

The head of state mentioned tax reforms and the restructuring of natural monopolies as the priorities of Russia’s economic policies. According to him, all activities in these spheres should be aimed at Russia's economic growth. Mr. Putin reiterated that the laws on reforming the railroad and electric energy sectors had been adopted in Russia already and further steps in this direction should be made. He added that it was necessary to act very carefully in the economic sphere since the price of a mistake was very high.

He mentioned development of pension reforms as the main direction in the social sphere. "Clear steps" should be made in providing qualitative services in the spheres of health care and education, the President added.

Responding to questions of journalists about his possible successor at the next elections Mr. Putin said that he had started searching for such a person 4 years ago. He specified that it should be “a decent and honest person” who would be able to fulfill the functions of the head of state. “There are many such people in our country,” he stressed.

Mr. Putin has claimed overwhelming victory at the presidential elections with some 71 percent of the vote. Communist party candidate Nikolay Kharitonov, who was the second, mustered just 13.9 percent. Sergey Glazyev and Irina Khakamada followed them.