TANDEM AGAIN

0
247

THE PRESIDENT WILL ADDRESS THE FEDERAL ASSEMBLY, THE PREMIER WILL SPEAK AT THE UNITED RUSSIA CONVENTION

Dmitry Medvedev and Vladimir Putin will tell Russia all about economic and political modernization in November.


Sources in the Presidential Administration and in the Duma said, independently of each other, that the president might deliver his Message to the Federal Assembly on November 12.

According to the Presidential Administration official, the second reading of the budget was to be submitted for discussion on November 18. As the Message itself was to be focused on modernization and the crisis as the president himself had said in his “Forward, Russia!” piece, some amendments of the draft budget might become necessary. Hence the decision to deliver the Message a week or so before discussion of the draft budget in the second reading. Failure to introduce the necessary corrections will mean postponement of modernization and delay with execution of whatever orders Medvedev will give in the Message.

A source in the Expert Directorate of the Presidential Administration told this newspaper that officials had been instructed to come up with a detailed plan of the national economy conversion and putting it on modernization tracks. The president said as well that he wanted his Message to the Federal Assembly to be based on the ideas developed by the Modernization Commission established on May 21. In “Forward, Russia!”, Dmitry Medvedev appealed to society and political parties to contribute to the work on the document too.

It is known that all political parties submitted their proposals to the Presidential Administration, last week. According to Vadim Soloviov of the Central Committee of the CPRF, Communists suggested restoration of the Gosplan (or its modern analog) in the government.

Yevgeny Fyodorov, Economic Policy Committee Chairman, said that United Russia’s suggestions concerned development of the intellectual property market (1) and generally aggressive environment preventing businesses from investing in modernization (2).

Sources in the Kremlin suspect that the Message to the Federal Assembly might also mention the ban on capital punishment, alcohol monopolism, and unification of the performance of regional power structures.

President’s Press Secretary Natalia Timakova confirmed that the Message would probably be delivered in early November.

Dmitry Badovsky of the Public House said that delivery of the Message on November 12 would spotlight a trend. Last year, the tandem of president and the premier made policy statements nearly simultaneously – the former with his Message on November 5 and the latter at the United Russia convention on November 20. Same thing may happen this year. Vladimir Putin is expected to address the United Russia convention in St.Petersburg on November 21. “It stands to reason to expect Medvedev’s statement to be focused strategic objectives and Putin’s on tactical matters,” Badovsky said.

LEAVE A REPLY