27 May 2004 05:31
Putin plans to go for growth, cut poverty
Russian President Vladimir Putin plans to cut taxes, allow the rouble to be fully convertible and curb inflation as
he seeks to double the size of the economy and reduce poverty.
"Only by keeping a high rate of growth will we be able to avoid being pushed to the outskirts of the global
economy," Putin said in his state of the nation address. "We need to grow faster than the rest of the
world." Putin said as many as 30 million people are poor and said he wants his government to make housing, health
care and education more affordable. He also wants to develop the mortgage market and cut administrative barriers for
companies seeking construction contracts.
The economy in Russia, the world's second-biggest oil exporter, is growing for a sixth year, helped by high
prices for oil and government moves to cut taxes and bureaucracy. It still has to restore its economy to the size it was
before the Soviet Union collapsed. While real incomes grew 14 per cent in the first quarter, more than a seventh of the
population live below the US$80 a month poverty line.
"The devotion to the course of Russia over past years was confirmed," said Putin aide Viktor Ivanov after
the speech. "That is a course of strengthening democratic achievements, a course of harmonizing our society with
the international community, a course of strengthening our relations with the European Union and with other leading
countries." Strengthening the state does not mean a turn towards to authoritarianism, Putin said. He said Russia
will stick to democratic values, which are defined "by the people's will and by Russia's strategic
interests." "Our main task is to create a free society of free people," Putin said. "A person who
isn't free can't take care of either himself, his family or his motherland." Putin was re-elected with 71
per cent of the vote on March 14. Since the election, he has stressed improvements in public services, faster economic
growth and poverty reduction as his main goals. United Russia, a party which supports the president, has a
constitutional majority in parliament.
Russia needs to reduce the inflation rate to 3 per cent and to make the rouble fully convertible, he said. Taxes
should be cut further, especially value-added taxes and a so-called unified social tax that employers pay on
workers' salaries in addition to workers' income tax, he said.
Authorities need to "draw a clear line" between tax optimization practices and illegal tax evasion, he
said.
[China Daily] |
RUSSIA IN FACTS
