Good Governance->Resilient Nation: Putin at the All-Russian Municipal Forum: Small Motherland-Strong Russia

A very long read.

Seems self-evident that a well governed nation will be in a better condition to meet an assortment of challenges than one that’s governed poorly. The past twenty years prove this dynamic rather well when looking at the Big Picture: The dynamic nations promoting People Centered Development—China and Russia being the two best examples—are performing very well, their publics like their governments and the level of national pride is very high, while on the other hand there’re the nations plagued by the financialized political-economy known as Neoliberalism that’s debilitated those nation’s industrial base and encouraged their citizens to load themselves with debt so they can afford the rising cost of living caused by government policy that’s increased poverty, unemployment, and decreased social benefits and the maintenance of infrastructure causing growing wide-spread discontent that crosses political lines. The nation most visibly falling apart amidst rising political anxiety is the USA where the level of corruption going unpunished is spectacular, beginning with President Biden. Not just national governance is bad, but also state and local governance too. The current talk is the Establishment’s going to foment a war with Russia so the November election can be cancelled. And before that, a Civil War was going to erupt. Neither rumor would come from a nation being governed well. Indeed, the difference between the USA and Russia/China is stark, which is why the USA has named Russia/China as its top enemies.

Evidence for that stark divide is readily seen in the efforts Russia’s made to increase the sense of pride Russians have for Russia and Russianness which was very necessary after the very gross mishandling of Russia’s governance during the Yeltsin years of the 1990s that killed millions of Russians. During Soviet times, many professions were honored with their own specific holiday, a tradition that remains very lively. Readers of other items here at the Gym know the depth of Russia’s volunteerism and the genuine connectedness of its people—a civic virtue yearned for by many nations. State recognition for various accomplishments outside the military is also a long-standing tradition, not just for individuals but for cities and entire regions. This year a new award was instituted along with a conference of potential winners: All-Russian Municipal Award "Service"—specifically “honorary title of Honoured Worker of Local Self-Government of the Russian Federation”—and the debut of the Small Motherland – Russia's Strength All-Russian Municipal Forum. The award ceremony was after a larger confab of 7,000 people attending the first Small Motherland: Russia’s Strength gathering in Moscow. The name’s a result of something Putin’s been doing for years now in his governing style—listen to and work with the people for they’re the source of Russia’s strength. It’s his mantra and he demonstrates it all the time.

First, we’ll have Putin’s short speech at the award ceremony, which includes some brief words from the winner, and then the discussion at the meeting with the heads of municipalities of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation. All emphasis mine.

Ilnara Safina, head administrator of the Meshchegarovsky village council of the Salavat district of the Republic of Bashkortostan.

Vladimir Putin: Dear colleagues and friends,

I am very happy to welcome the participants of the First All-Russian Municipal Forum "Small Motherland-the Power of Russia". What a name!

Today, there are representatives of the municipal community from all regions of the country: heads of municipalities, municipal employees, employees of municipal organizations – people who in their cities, districts, rural settlements achieve real changes for the better, find their vocation in working for the benefit of their fellow citizens.

I believe that the very name of the forum contains a lot of things, a deep meaning. Love for a small homeland is a very personal, warm feeling, but at the same time it has a huge creative force, a force of truly national scale. After all, the transformation and strengthening of the entire country, its confident progress, and, I will say more, Russia's position in the world, begin with a sincere desire to do as much as possible for your native places, for those places where you spent your childhood, where your loved ones, your family, your friends and fellow countrymen now live, with the desire to contribute to prosperity and development of your city, village, or district. After all, this is so consonant with the words of the legendary song, which, I am sure, everyone here knows: "Where does the Motherland begin...". [A Traditional Value]

We often say that the municipal authorities are closest to the people. Of course they are. The quality of everyday life of our citizens directly depends on it. And I want to repeat once again: it is the municipal level and local self-government that determine the image of our entire large country, the way people see their present and future.

I know that the main events of the forum were held at the site of the exhibition "Russia", where everything that our country can rightfully be proud of is presented in a large-scale and fascinating way. And I think you have felt that these achievements are the result of our work, and above all of your work, dear friends.

Much has been done, much remains to be done, but many good and useful initiatives have been implemented thanks to the All-Russian competition of the best projects for creating a comfortable urban environment. And I can say that a decision has already been made to extend it until 2030.

I would also like to note that today a decree was signed establishing the honorary title "Honored Worker of Local Self-Government of the Russian Federation". It should have been done long ago. In this regard, I will say that among those who devote themselves to municipal work, there are a lot of worthy people who are actually reviving the best traditions of local self-government in Russia. And its rich history goes back centuries, in fact, the history of the formation of a strong, unified Russian state is also the creative development of local self-government. And it is very important for us that this continuity is not interrupted, but strengthened, and the voice of local self-government is directly heard in the decision-making process. That is why representatives of municipal bodies participate in the work of the State Council.

It is important that as many people as possible, including young people, feel in demand at all levels of public authority and, of course, become part of the municipal community. [Everyone has worth]

I know that there are some of you who have set an example of loyalty to the Motherland and its interests by performing tasks during a special military operation. At the same time, I would like to express my gratitude and say that this is a very good example of how people from your environment, in general, at any level of government, do not sit out in their offices, but share the fate of the Motherland. They are together with the people and together with the army.

The strength of the spirit of the defenders of our Fatherland, their deep awareness of patriotism, is certainly amazing. And, I repeat, if they have a desire to further apply their best qualities in various areas of civil service, this desire must be supported.

Municipal employees of our regions located in the immediate vicinity of the war zone show resilience and dedication: they often work under fire, help the elderly, children, fellow villagers and fellow countrymen, risking themselves. And of course, I would like to mention the employees of the local authorities of Donbass and Novorossiya – these are really strong, you can say, steely people who have proved that no one and nothing can break them.

I would like to thank all my colleagues across our vast country, who at the local and municipal level help soldiers on the front line, and support the families of our servicemen with attention and care. This is the most important national task, which is of great moral importance. And, of course, the key to solving it is to see the specific needs of our heroes, veterans, and respond quickly and sensitively to all this.

And in general, working in local self-government, of course, requires special responsiveness, the ability to perceive problems in difficult situations, and to perceive them as our own, understanding that we all act for the sake of a common goal – the happiness and well-being of our native country, the future of our children. This is the meaning of serving the Motherland, fellow citizens, when the highest value is the common good, participation in the fate of the Fatherland and readiness to unite in times of historical challenges.

Dear friends, I would like to congratulate all the winners and laureates of the All-Russian Municipal Award "Service". And I will be glad to present the award in the special nomination "Human destiny – pride of the Fatherland" today. This award is a tribute to people who direct their strength and energy and, seemingly in a simple, ordinary situation, solve very important tasks for residents of cities and towns, contribute to the transformation of these settlements. It is from such concrete changes for the better – for people's lives, for their well-being-that the path to new great successes begins, and from the love of our native places – different, unique, inimitable-that our common understanding of the value of sovereignty, the free development of Russia, and our right to determine our own future is born. And, of course, without any doubt, we guarantee this right.

I thank you for your attention and will be happy to proceed directly to the award ceremony.

Irina Safina: Thank you all very much!

Dear Vladimir Vladimirovich, Dear colleagues!

Let me thank you, WARMSA, Sergey Kiriyenko, Irina Mikhailovna Guseva, and all the voting participants for such a high assessment of my work. On my own behalf, Mr President, and on behalf of all our colleagues in our vast country, I thank you for your tireless work for the good of the Fatherland. Today, the whole of Russia has rallied around you and our soldiers who defend our Homeland. I know that many of my colleagues have husbands and brothers there, as well as my spouse. We will always be their reliable rear and will do everything to bring our victory closer.

Thank you all very much!

Vladimir Putin: I congratulate the winners. I would like to appeal to you and your colleagues who are not here today, but who are probably closely following what is happening in Moscow today, and to all those who work at the municipal level. We talk all the time, and I have already said it many times, but this is the case when you can and should say it again: you have the most difficult job, because you communicate directly with people, and this is always the most responsible part of our common work.

Sometimes you have to answer even for something that is not part of your duties – for the whole country. I am well aware of this, and I have been doing it since I worked in Leningrad and St. Petersburg: but it is not within the competence of a city or other locality, much less a village, to solve certain tasks, but people still come to you. And you need to find the strength, to find such strings in your soul in order to support the person in any case. It's a talent. If you work from the heart and with the result, then it is certainly necessary to show a talent for communicating with people. I very much hope that there will be more and more such people in our municipalities.

I sincerely wish you every success. Thank you very much for your hard work.

Thank you.

What a pep-talk! Russia’s strength flows from its people, for the people make the people strong and thus the nation’s strong. Doesn’t get any more basic than that, but if it’s basic, why don’t we see it universally? And Putin’s words are those the West doesn’t want anyone to know. And now to Putin’s opening remarks and discussion with the heads of municipalities of Russia’s constituent entities:

Vladimir Putin: Dear colleagues and friends, good afternoon!

I welcome you all, I am glad to see you.

Let's talk together – we've already started talking on the issues right now-about the issues that you deal with on a daily basis, to which you have devoted your life

I will say – as I said in the audience just now, and I will repeat it here, that it is clear that your work is the most difficult, because you work directly with people and you have to answer questions that you sometimes have nothing to do with, are not within your competence, but still people come first of all to you: they are the most important You can't get to Moscow, the Kremlin, or the White House, but I hope they get to you.

Of course, your work should be structured in such a way that your competence coincides with the amount of funding and sources. We'll probably talk about this today.

This is the first All-Russian municipal forum, it is called very beautifully: "Small Motherland is the strength of Russia". And, as I was told, in general, it gathered 7 thousand people, which is a lot, a large number of people, but Irina Mikhailovna [Guseva] has just suggested that in general, 4.5 million [people] work in the system. Of course, it is impossible to collect all of them, but each of them has their own contribution to the development of their respective territories.

There are very good practices, but everything happens: the country is huge, the problems are innumerable, of course. But there are very good practices, of course, you need to scale them. It is very important to have such platforms that allow you to do this.

I hope that you will continue to share your ideas and impressions about what is happening here and how it is going, first of all, of course, about what concerns you directly, your work.

I have already said it in the audience, and I will repeat it again, and I will do it again with pleasure: a decree was signed today establishing the honorary title of "Honored Worker of Local Self-Government of the Russian Federation". It was high time to do this, one of the most important areas of work, and, without any exaggeration, of national significance. And many people deserve that the state also celebrates their merits in this way.

And of course, we are very interested in – when I say "we", I mean the country as a whole-that (and I will say this again) people come to this job who are trained, promising, able and willing to work and achieve results in this important area.

In other words, strengthening human resources is a very important area. There are a lot of directions here, probably not enough to list them all. I would like to draw your attention to a few of them. First – of course, I have also said it many times, and I will repeat it again: we must, of course, pay attention to the guys who are returning from the special military operation zone. It's still, you know, when people decide to do this, when they go through this crucible, come back, many life priorities are built differently.

You won't be able to jump around without your pants on at any events here, you know, people look at life quite differently here, their priorities are different, their values are different. Such people, if they have a penchant for this kind of work, of course, they should be involved in this work.

Of course, we need to attract young people. As we like to say, this is a stamp, but nevertheless it is justified: the future belongs to the young, they feel their generations better. They pass generational things through themselves better, they can respond more subtly to the needs of society, this is important.

You know that at the end of last year, the School of Mayors program for the development of the municipal personnel management reserve was launched. The first two streams already train 160 people. Two more streams will be launched this year.

And I would very much like it to be a good, necessary platform for you (both for you and for your subordinates), so that when you go through it, you feel that there is such intellectual support.

The so-called Digital University of Municipalities for distance learning has also started working. There is a GosStart program for supporting young employees. To be honest, if you have an idea of how all these tools work, I would very much like to hear your opinion on this and your recommendations on what should be done additionally, how to configure this system. [Improve the system of governance.]

And of course, all programs of development and training of municipal personnel should be available to colleagues from Donbass and Novorossiya. This goes without saying. We'll probably talk about this too, as they need to integrate into our legal system.

I would also like to mention the role of the All-Russian Association for the Development of Local Self-Government. Just now Irina Mikhailovna was talking about just that. Not only does the association help raise the prestige of local self-government and those who work in this system, but it also builds a dialogue with regional and federal authorities, which is extremely important in order to make balanced decisions that can be implemented at the municipal level. You can make a lot of decisions, but good intentions are always enough. Here's how to implement them? That's a different question. Here, of course, it is very important to have a dialogue and compare opportunities with your wishes.

What else would you like to draw your attention to? I believe that we should use all the mechanisms for more active participation of municipalities in shaping the national development agenda. And in this regard (we also talked about it just now, and our colleagues rate it positively), work in the State Council, attracting such sites. We will continue to do so. And we now have a Council for the development of local Self-government, among other things. At its meeting in April, if you remember last year, we talked about the difficulties that you are facing, and we are currently trying to implement some solutions.

What am I talking about, what do I mean? A detailed inventory of all spending powers of municipalities is conducted. To be honest, we don't stop doing this from year to year, we share all the powers and sources of funding. But this work in general is still useful. As a result, the Government should make a decision to exclude duplicate or uncharacteristic functions of local self-government. Also, if you have any thoughts on this matter, I will be happy to listen and take note.

Now control and supervisory activities are also very important. Here it is important not to miss and not to let go, not to roll out fines, but to warn in a timely manner about possible mistakes and help people on the ground not to make these mistakes.

In this regard, the practice of applying preventive measures, and not just penalties, should be expanded in the work of the Prosecutor's Office. If you have any thoughts or comments on this issue, please.

Digital solutions, digital technologies. Of course, we are implementing them all over the country, in all industries. At the municipal level, it is also important to use these technologies. I hope you do. If you have any thoughts on this matter, please, I will also be happy to take them into account.

That's probably all I'd like to say at the beginning.

Irina Mikhailovna, please.

Irina Guseva: Dear Vladimir Vladimirovich, Colleagues!

Of course, Mr President, I cannot but greet you on behalf of the All-Russian Association for the Development of Local Self-Government and on behalf of the army of municipal employees that I mentioned when I met you. We are different, Mr Putin, from a small village to a city with a population of one million, but we are united by the tasks set before us, together with people, for the sake of people and next to people. Everything that we do is clear that this is a huge range of goals and objectives. And you were absolutely right to point out that we should have enough competencies.

When you mentioned the School of Mayors, the heads of Donetsk, which is also already participating in this project, are here today. We have wonderful people, we have wonderful citizens, they come to us with questions. Sometimes they ask a question that doesn't always apply to the municipal level of government, but they want an answer to it at the moment. And our task is not to throw each other (not mine, I don't know), but to solve these problems. People expect from us, and as you rightly said once, " Service is service." People have entrusted a high position and, of course, want the result and solution of the issue. [Governing Ethos.]

Vladimir Vladimirovich, the All-Russian Municipal Forum "Small Motherland-the Power of Russia" started working yesterday. I would like to tell you that yesterday there were 65 different venues, platforms, and 19 lecture halls of our scientific community at VDNKh…

Vladimir Putin: A good exhibition. Did you like it?

Irina Guseva: I didn't just like it, but we realized what a great country it is. We sometimes live in a small town: my best.

You will ask me now: is my region the best for me? Of course, I was born and raised. But when they saw the scale and what was happening in the country, what changes, what kind of people were living, they came out of there (I'm not talking about domestic tourism) and everyone said how they wanted to hear, see, share and maybe take the best and apply it to themselves somewhere.

Mr Putin, these platforms for heads of state have become a direct dialogue with the federal government. Ministers, heads of FIVS, and business representatives were also present, because it is also very important for us to have a conversation with them and build a dialogue, and many of our NGO partners were present at the event.

The conversation was not easy, Mr Putin. I will tell you honestly that many sites continued to work for a very long time, going beyond the time frame, because the conversation was lively, genuine, it went from the heart. Maybe they didn't speak so beautifully, but they were honest, really, and received the same answer.

You know, we had three platforms: "Strength in people", "Strength in traditions" and "Strength in Development". "Strength is in people" – because, as you saw in the audience today, and I will probably take the liberty of being one of the co-chairs: Mr Putin, I am proud of our municipal community. Many people really serve 24/7 and love their work. We have mentors-25, 35, 40 years old. We have colleagues here who have more than 40 years – one entry in the employment record book. These people today we call the gold fund, these are mentors, this is a textbook, these are those who will share their practice.

Of course, speaking about people, we, Mr Putin, discussed the challenges of today on this platform. I can't help but tell you this: as soon as the SVO started, more than 3,000 of our colleagues resigned and went to war. We have losses, but we are also proud of the people who are still in the ranks today. Their wives and children know for sure that we will surround them with care and attention. And your task was: each of our employees is assigned, we will also tell you about this today.

Mr Putin, I cannot but say that there are heads of state among our colleagues. You know that we are the leaders of the draft board. We have a mother with many children, who has six children. She herself brought the summons to her son, one, and the other, and then when she went with humanitarian aid, she met him there. All my colleagues were surprised: "Is your mother the head?" And she said that she raised her son correctly. And such stories, Mr President, if I had the time, I would tell you with a dear soul about each of my colleagues.

They used to scold us. Rightly so. We have something to scold you for, Mr Putin, we do. But at the same time, I want us to see the good things, because there are so many such examples.

I can say that some of our colleagues have many children. And here, in the hall, there are also such colleagues who took their children from one, two, 12 people each, took the whole village of children, surrounding them with attention, care and love, their God's purpose. I am proud of these colleagues.

Of course, I can tell you that there are a million such stories – Today, our colleagues will share it with you. I only know that the platform where we talked about people, it ended with the fact that youth and wisdom together are able to continue to move and do what people tell us to do.

Our young people are not worse, not better, they are just different. We need to learn to listen and hear each other, understanding that the soul is hurting, the soul is Russian, this gene of memory, gratitude. And as long as we feel this pain, as long as we understand what is happening around us, there is an excuse in our life and an understanding of why this particular profession was chosen.

Of course, when you say that you would like to hear about new competencies, the "School of Mayors" has really started working. And we would like to go further, maybe [create] a "Team School", where teams could study, narrow-profile specialists, sharing their experience on our own site, on the site of RANEPA, Senezh, because they have become very serious partners for us this year.

And just yesterday, Mr President, I can brag that we launched the digital platform "Municipalities.Russian Federation". It is unique in that there are eight digital services, a navigator of opportunities, where each head, entering his personal account, gets an answer to the question: what federal program can I participate in, how to prepare documents? This will help you find the answer to your budget more quickly and quickly: how I will develop the territory, where I can still participate and bring a penny to my municipality.

Of course, Mr Putin, I must tell you that the digital platform is not the only way to communicate. Nothing can replace the human word, so this year we launched a municipal dialogue on the WARMSU platform, 81 thousand initiatives, and we divided it into blocks: from economic issues related to housing and communal services, healthcare, education, social sphere, agriculture, and all areas of life, to today's very important, from our point of view. the topics that we can't help but discuss (it goes through the heart, through the brain) are, of course, memory preservation (not to let history be rewritten), and the example of those guys you mentioned who come back and integrate into the work system. And today you saw on the stage one of these guys, a Hero of Russia, both legs are missing, but he came back from the war, joined in and today helps the mayor of Yaroslavl, works with guys in the patriotic club who have no fathers or whose fathers are fighting. We are proud of him, he is a role model and a mentor to those who are younger.

Vladimir Vladimirovich, of course, today each of us really wants to share and tell (and there is something to tell). I will convey only one idea and give the floor to my colleagues.

You know what an amazingly beautiful people we have, patient, very hardworking, reliable, patriotic. If earlier, Mr Putin, many people simply watched from the sidelines what the authorities were doing, today they are always close to us through all the tools (be it the council of elders, house elders, NGOs or CBTs). On any platform, they are our strict judges, as well as our advisers, partners and colleagues, including even the issue of national budgeting (we discussed it yesterday and were preparing for the meeting).

We understand perfectly well that our colleagues, who are discussing the budget with us today, participate in many projects in rubles, and we see how the situation is changing. Taking this opportunity, we also thank our residents for this. Because it is very important – not instead, but together. I always give an example: with my finger or with my fist. Of course, it is easier to solve the issue with a fist or a team.

I thank you for this opportunity as a co-chair. I live this job just like my colleagues. We love our work. I don't want to take up any more time, I want you to hear those practitioners who just yesterday came to Moscow together with colleagues from there, from the front line with people – and there is something to brag about, and be proud of, and share. If I may, I would like to give the first floor to the head of Veliky Novgorod, Alexander Rozbaum.

Thank you.

Alexander Rozbaum: Dear Vladimir Vladimirovich, Dear colleagues!

It is a great honor for me to be here and work with you today. Not so long ago, I managed the Starorussky municipal district in the Novgorod region and the historical city of Staraya Russa. This is the city of military glory, the city of Fyodor Mikhailovich Dostoevsky, it is a city with a great history. Such cities as Veliky Novgorod, Suzdal, Vladimir, Derbent, Kerch, and Murom formed the basis of our multinational state.

The history of our country is rich. And we must protect it, know it, pass it on to the younger generations, so that it is not just a simple lesson, but rather go beyond the school curriculum, study and be interested in the history of our native land, our country. Small and medium-sized cities allow us to touch the living history, monuments, shrines, and feel our cultural and genetic code. Therefore, what we are doing in our city, what we have exchanged with our colleagues, is really very important at this stage of revival, love for the Motherland, and the formation of new institutions.

Speaking about the opportunities available in our museums-small museums, sometimes open-air museums - they are so fascinating to visitors of our cities that they do not fit into the allotted time for conducting excursions. The way our ancestors lived, built, and defended our cities is a living interest and a real lesson in history and patriotism, and now it is also especially important.

Speaking about the tasks that you formulated in your Address to the Federal Assembly in April 2021, that our small cities should increase the potential of tourist attractiveness. We can already see the result of this work: many cities have been transformed, they show the highlights that make us want to come again, and we are proud of it.

I currently work in Veliky Novgorod. This is a city with a great history, the city of Grand Duke Alexander Nevsky, the school of Yaroslav the Wise, the Novgorod veche and the epic hero Sadko. This year Veliky Novgorod will celebrate its 1165th anniversary. [The Veche was a council/legislature; soviet is derived from the word and what it did for governance.]

Veliky Novgorod is a city of military glory. In four days, on January 20, we will celebrate the 80th anniversary of the liberation of our city from the Nazi invaders. During the war, the city of Novgorod was almost completely destroyed. We are also proud that the liberation of Novgorod played a key strategic role in the complete lifting of the enemy blockade of the city of Leningrad.

We, Novgorodians, see, dear Vladimir Vladimirovich, how our city is changing in all areas thanks to your attitude. The way our hospitals are being renovated, the way our hospitals and polyclinics are being filled with new equipment, the housing and communal services systems are being modernized, including new solutions, this is a special economic zone. Just this year, the assembly of Sber smart TVs will begin, this is the innovative valley "Valdai", where 25 residents from the country's leading corporations and companies in the high-tech sector work. Now this is also important, taking into account import substitution and external sanctions pressure.

I would especially like to mention the program that you initiated, which is the renovation of our schools, the overhaul of our schools, because the way schools are being transformed internally and externally is really a kind and positive response from children, parents and teachers. I would like to thank you very much for this, because small municipalities could hardly carry out this work on their own. Both now and next year, we have many such facilities planned, and we have exchanged opinions with our colleagues and confirmed them, so thank you very much.

Dear Vladimir Vladimirovich, on your instructions, the Government purchases school buses and transfers them to municipalities. I would like to take this opportunity to ask all municipalities to continue this type of support. This is very important for us.

Thank you very much.

Vladimir Putin: First, of course, the 80th anniversary of the liberation of Novgorod is a big event. You are absolutely right, this contributed to the complete lifting of the siege of Leningrad.

And in general, if my memory serves me correctly, in August 1941 Novgorod was already occupied. For two and a half years he was in this state-until January 20, 1944. And the enemy somehow held on to these places. January 1944! And, as we know, in May 1945, everything was already over for him. Until January 1944, he clung to Novgorod. It is no coincidence that there were reasons for this. But nevertheless, thanks to the heroism of the Red Army, our people, and this problem was solved, the enemy was expelled from there.

In general, Novgorod played, of course, a huge role in the formation of a single centralized Russian state, that's for sure.

By the way, the veche was not only a form of government in Veliky Novgorod, but also in many other cities of medieval Russia. So such a tradition – to make the most important decisions in a democratic way-in general was one of the basic ones on the territory of Ancient Russia.

Of course, we must remember the past, protect it, and protect our history – this is our foundation for moving forward, for building a solid building of Russian statehood on this foundation. And to go forward, including solving the problems of today and tomorrow, and not least in the social sphere-in health care, in education.

This program has been in effect for several years now. We allocated about 10 billion rubles a year for the School Bus, for this program. I don't remember, God forbid, somewhere, in my opinion, 11 thousand pieces were purchased. In any case, we have allocated about 32 billion rubles from the federal budget for these purposes over the past three years, and this year we will also allocate 10 billion rubles.

You are absolutely right that this program should be extended, because we have not yet solved all the problems in the field of municipal and regional roads. And if so, then it is necessary to ensure a comfortable and safe movement of children to school, that's for sure. And roads should be built, of course, and we will do it.

Much has been done here. I don't know if you notice it or not. You probably notice it too, especially since the highway passes through Novgorod. We have to make a detour around Novgorod, we will do all this, we will definitely bring it there. No, not Novgorod, it's in the neighboring region – you need to make a detour there. And so, in Novgorod, the congress is good, everything is done there as it should be.

So we will do all this, and we will extend the "School Bus" program. And not only this year we will allocate the necessary resources, I repeat, 10 billion, in my opinion, is planned, but we will also extend it without fail.

Alexander Balbekov: May I ask your permission, Mr President?

Vladimir Putin: Of course.

A. Balbekov: Voronezh region, Bobrovsky district, Head of Administration Anatoly Balbekov.

The district is agricultural, aimed at the production and processing of agricultural products.

Vladimir Putin: Voronezh Region, right?

A. Balbekov: Voronezh Region.

Vladimir Vladimirovich, if you go to any store today, we will see almost all our products, Russian, starting from potatoes and ending with world-class delicacies. There was a time, I ran around Moscow, looked, saw our Voronezh products, was sincerely happy – our products are no worse. And we make delicacies. For example, in the district today we make more than 60 types of cheese, including those with blue mold.

Now by January 7, by Christmas …

Vladimir Putin: I remember that anecdote was told about this yesterday: "Do you have any mildewed cheese? — no. There are sausages." Thank God we have blue cheese, that's for sure, and the sausages we absolutely need are of the highest quality.

Alexander Balbekov: We also make sausages, Mr Putin. We have now received equipment and are working on white mold.

What did I want? We got delicious strawberries for Christmas. Science has already been involved in genetics, and the laboratory has received, thank you, a federal grant from the Ministry of Education. We invited a young girl, a graduate student from the Michurinsky Agricultural Institute Nadezhda Sergeevna. Now a young man has arrived to see her. He also teaches mechanical engineering at the college. The professions are good, we need them, and the people are good. I have already talked to them, and they set the task of improving and expanding housing. We will definitely solve this problem, and many federal programs will help us here.

Vladimir Vladimirovich, and the village has already become far from the same. Our district center has changed, it has become like a city. If we look back to the Soviet era, our production is a multiple-from four times to seven times, excellent indicators. They would have said it earlier, but I didn't believe it myself.

So today, of course, we have a decent social system in this regard. To say that everything is good there is too much. There are questions, and people ask us. Sometimes, the higher the standard gets, the more questions people ask. But they are asking different questions today. If we don't solve something ourselves, we run to the governor, and it helps. We are working on this plan.

And look, even the same business. We work with businesses today under the KRST system-integrated rural development. They also participate in these programs. But in addition to these programs, they have recently become much more socially oriented – they participate in the life of the district, participate in sports, participate in education, teach children, and receive classes and grants. And the most important thing is that at least they can hear us.

What is our motto? First of all, how they relate to the people who live on the territory. It's snowing heavily now. Especially those who are engaged in animal husbandry, they are cleaned before anyone else. So many thanks to them. It's nice to be heard.

The KRST program is great, it gives value to everyone. Businesses, of course, are happy, and people are the most important thing that they get, because we get housing, roads: we have put things in order, several roads have been built under the KRST program. This also adds to the municipality's income. The security guards get it, we give it to the doctors, and we gave teachers and coaches quite a large number of apartments.

Mr President, first of all, I would like to say a huge thank you. Of course, I would like the program to remain constant. And I would like to say thank you from business, from people and from us – from many colleagues [from] municipalities. Thank you very much, because today we see the role of the state and see the strategies of the state. Our people who are in the village, they already look forward to tomorrow with confidence. We love our small homeland and are proud of it.

Mr President, we would like to take this opportunity to invite you. You haven't been to Voronezh for a long time, because you can talk about it, and we are ready to show you what we really have.

Thank you.

Vladimir Putin: Fine.

Anatoly Ivanovich, thank you for the invitation.

The Voronezh Region is developing at a good pace, confidently, and it is such a stable territory.

A. Balbekov: After 2014, I'm sorry, how did you announce in 2014 that import substitution will continue?…

Vladimir Putin: Yes, the sanctions also helped us then. We introduced our response measures for agricultural products, started supporting producers, and it really went well.

People were ready for this, at that time, just as many people working in industry, in various industries and industries are now ready. Then the villagers were ready, the state supported them, and now the same thing is happening in industry.

This is a separate topic. In any case, agriculture shows a very good and steady pace of development. We fully ensure our food security for the main types of products. You know, you are from there, from this industry, everything is stable. Last year there was a record grain harvest in the history of Russia – 156 million tons.

Russia continues to confidently hold the first place in the world in terms of wheat sales on global markets. Probably, people who used to work in agricultural production could not even imagine this, but these are the realities of today. And this year, 143, plus – if you count the new territories – another 4 million, then 147 million will be. It's not easy to calculate there for various reasons, statistics are different, and so on, but it doesn't matter. Even without new territories, 143 million tons is a very good indicator. So I want to thank all the villagers once again for these results.

At the same time, of course, there is still an outflow of population. And this is due to the insufficient development of the social sphere, first of all, infrastructure, water, medicine, education, all this needs to be developed. Yes, we do this from year to year. The first such comprehensive programs were launched in 2003. Then they were called differently, passed into each other, but this is not enough yet.

People are different both in rural areas and in cities. Rural areas have many advantages from the point of view of ecology. But still, we must say directly and honestly that life expectancy in rural areas is one and a half years lower than in urban areas. This is such an integrated indicator. And as for healthcare and education, by the way, it is also very related to this-we need to pay more attention to this.

And of course, the program of integrated rural development that you mentioned should be continued. We will definitely do this, 100 percent. Even, as we say, don't go to your grandmother. By definition, this should be done and we will continue to do it. Moreover, we will also work on solving housing, healthcare, education, water supply, gas supply, infrastructure development, especially road infrastructure.

Of course, you need a lot of money, but it's worth it. What do you mean, it's worth it? This is necessary for the people, for the country. I have just spoken with the Minister, and this year, in my opinion, 70 billion rubles have been planned. A little less than the Ministry requested, but still 70 billion is a decent amount of money.

I have already mentioned the achievements of agriculture. There are also problems, as you know, with seeds. You need to provide yourself with seeds. Today, we provide 63-65-67 percent of our income, but we need at least 75 percent. Therefore, there are a lot of tasks, but it is impossible to solve problems without people who work there and feel good and confident, so the program will be extended.

Tatyana Stoborova: Dear Vladimir Vladimirovich,

Let me share with you, with all those present, how rural areas live today. I work as the head of administration of the rural settlement "Railway station Kudrinskaya" in the Meshchovsky district of the Kaluga Region. I have been working in the profession for a long time, I live and was born here, in this rural area. All the hard and difficult life of our village passed through my fate. The villagers always thought: when will happiness finally come to us, when will our small homeland flourish? And now the time has come. We are grateful today to you, Mr President, and to the Government of the Russian Federation, and to all state programs that we can live with dignity today.

Indeed, the village has changed, it has become beautiful, solid, comfortable, and well-maintained. For example, in recent years we have also done a lot to make life in the countryside completely different: we have renovated two rural houses of culture, overhauled two libraries, built three good, modern sports grounds, laid out and equipped four municipal squares, including two squares of military glory.

Today we are engaged in resettling rural residents from dilapidated housing. We have completely eliminated this problem. Today we are putting agricultural land into circulation, because we have good business owners working in the countryside, who bought this land and gave us the opportunity to increase productivity and jobs, and to add to the fact that the income from this land and taxes come to our treasury.

A lot has been done, but there is still a lot to be done. Of course, we need to develop our territory more actively. We need to deal more quickly with the issues that you put before us, the state puts before us and, of course, people put before us. And to do this, of course, we need specialists in our administrations, specialized specialists: accountants, procurement specialists, architects.

Of course, time passes, and experienced, competent specialists retire. They need to be replaced by competent specialists who are no less competent than those who are leaving.

I know that other industry professionals, such as medical professionals and doctors, have excellent support programs. I think, Mr Putin, that we should also work out such a program for municipal employees: look at opportunities and think about preferential mortgages in conjunction with the territory, or, since the guys are graduating from higher educational institutions, those who want to continue their fate and connect their lives with the municipal service, maybe pay them some money. then lifting facilities, maybe something else to provide. These are my suggestions.

I also support my colleagues in the integrated rural development program, because we also participate in it, and this program also gives us the opportunity to work well. But, as you correctly said in your opening speech, it is necessary, of course, to deal with personnel. New modern young people, with modern education, with digital technologies, should come to the municipal service, to municipalities, as it should be today in our beautiful and wonderful country of Russia.

Thank you very much.

Vladimir Putin: Tamara Yakovlevna, you yourself mentioned some of our programs: "Zemsky paramedic" and "Zemsky Teacher". That's what you meant, isn't it? But these programs are designed specifically for rural areas and primarily to support people who work in rural areas. As for the mortgage – the same thing, we have a rural mortgage, it is preferential. And we will continue to do so.

But if you think that we need to think directly about some kind of benefits and some additional support directly for municipal employees, I will frankly say that I am not ready to say right now that, yes, we will do it, and we will do it to such an extent. You just need to calculate it, it's an additional cost. You all know what it is. But of course, you can think about it. Let me definitely instruct the Government to look at what areas, which specialists specifically need to be supported and what needs to be done for them. Let's take a look.

Tatyana Stoborova: Thank you very much.

Vladimir Putin: You're welcome. Thanks for the tip. Fine.

Yu.Shalabaev: May I ask your permission, Mr President?

Yuri Shalabaev, head of Nizhny Novgorod.

Vladimir Vladimirovich, I would like to touch upon an issue that probably interests residents of many, almost all, I think, localities, regardless of their size, from small to large-this is the issue of the quality and comfort of the urban environment.

Currently, a program initiated by you is being implemented throughout the country, which allows you to carry out and ensure large-scale landscaping in almost all municipalities. Prior to the implementation of this program, people considered the organization of territories to be the most exciting and problematic issues, and they generally assessed the work of local self-government bodies and the state of affairs in this area quite negatively. Why?

If you look at the state in which even the central squares, squares, and parks were sometimes in the early 2000s, everything becomes clear. What did people see? People saw the lack of grooming, people sometimes saw the lack of sidewalks, I'm sorry, toilets, elementary benches, trash cans, lighting, so the assessment was quite negative. Of course, a lot has changed over the years of the program's implementation, and the situation is completely different.

Using the example of Nizhny Novgorod, more than 160 public spaces were improved in Nizhny Novgorod alone. These are not only key spaces, such as the Kremlin, Nizhny Novgorod Strelka, Nizhny Novgorod Fair, Switzerland Park, but also small, sometimes courtyard territories, small parks and squares in all districts of the city.

Large cities with a population of millions are also being transformed, we have representatives, and small settlements are also being improved under this program. In humans, these changes find an exceptionally positive response.

The positive assessment of the state of affairs in the field of landscaping has significantly changed. There are different numbers. I will give you one of the figures for Nizhny Novgorod: there 78 percent consider the situation in the field of landscaping to be good. I think they may be different depending on the situation, but according to the latest [data], there is such a figure.

Why do people so support and appreciate the implementation of this program throughout the country? Because people decide for themselves what, where and how to improve. That is, what to improve and what should be there: a playground, a sports field, a quiet recreation area, or some architectural structure or fountain-they decide for themselves. Of course, this is reflected in the large number of people who participate in the selection of landscaping objects, in voting for landscaping objects. Sometimes you are surprised at how diverse and well-thought-out are the proposals of residents for improvement, starting from changing tables in sanitary rooms-I can be mistaken, in my opinion, there was such a practice in Kemerovo-to warm bus stops and warm benches in cities that are located in the north of our country.

In fact, this is the direct participation of people in making managerial decisions in a certain area, that is, in this case, in landscaping and in allocating budget funds for specific events and specific projects. Such practices, of course, have found their further expression in the form of municipal and regional programs of so-called initiative budgeting. The names can be completely different. The main thing is that people participate in all processes, starting from the selection of the object of budget spending or an event to monitoring its implementation.

For example, in the Nizhny Novgorod region, there is a very popular gubernatorial program" It's up to you!", where people offer their vision of what should be done first. And then, after the vote, appropriate budget funds are allocated, and the problematic issue is resolved. As another example, I can cite that 80 percent of the road repair program last year in Nizhny Novgorod was done at the request of residents. These are not some formal applications, maybe applications are the wrong word. Our analytical center and its digital platform simply records requests, requests, and wishes of residents even in social networks, through other communication channels, and in" public services " and inserts them into the program without any unnecessary bureaucratic procedure. Such practices, of course, exist in almost every region, in many municipalities, and are actively supported by residents everywhere. [Participatory Democracy]

Vladimir Vladimirovich, I talked to everyone at the forum, and the most important thing is that the municipal community, people not only support you, but actually thank you for your earlier decision, which allows you to carry out such transformations in all localities of the country. But the implementation of this decision is coming to an end this year, and there really is a lot that can, in fact, and needs to be done. The request from residents is growing, because there are examples of what has already been done, and I want to do this everywhere. It is clear that such projects require huge amounts of budget funds to be found. But if there is such an opportunity, we ask everyone to continue supporting the development of the urban environment in the future.

Vladimir Putin: Yuri Vladimirovich, the results are there, that's for sure. They are there thanks to you.

Now I'll explain what's going on. Not only to you personally, but also to your colleagues here, because we did what I asked you to do, namely, I asked you to include people in this process: 14.2 million people took part in this joint work.

First of all, it means that we, you, first of all, get where we need to go, "in the top ten" according to needs, because when people themselves take part, they indicate what they expect.

Second. After all, we make people partakers of a common process, and this always causes a positive emotion – when people see that the government is doing what they would like to see. And this, of course, is a good effect.

The program has been operating for several years, and it works well, as I said. And of course, yes, you are right, we are talking about billions, we allocated 20 billion each. We need to extend this program. And, moreover, it is necessary to increase it. I asked the Government to increase it by 5 billion, but if you don't mind, we will send this additional 5 billion to the Far East region, so that there is no depopulation, so that people do not leave, so that everyday issues related to people's lives are resolved there in an accelerated manner. But in any case, we will extend the program.

Yu.Shalabaev: Thank you.

Vladimir Loginov: Mr President, let me also say something about big cities. City of Krasnoyarsk, Vladislav Loginov – head of the city.

The very thoughts that my colleague from Nizhny Novgorod gave us will certainly support him and support the decisions that you have just mentioned. This is a very important event for us, just as important as today's conversation.

Today's conversation is important not only for those who are in this hall, but for all municipalities, because we are in contact, we are in cooperation, we always communicate together and decide through the association.

Another important event that has taken place is that we (I and the head of the city of Murmansk) have become members of the State Council of the Russian Federation. We take part in this process and share with our colleagues the events that are taking place.

We highly appreciate the fact that representatives of municipalities were invited to the President's Address. I would like to thank all our colleagues for this.

What else? So far, we have had the opportunity not only to have a dialogue with you, but also with the federal Government and ministries. Objectively, the Ministry of Agriculture, the Ministry of Construction and Housing and Communal Services of the Russian Federation, and the Federal Agency for Youth Policy are the first steps that we have taken and that we have met halfway. These are the very bodies that immediately opened all the doors, and not only for such large cities as Krasnoyarsk and Nizhny Novgorod, but also for all municipalities.

Last year, at the Council for Local Self-Government under the President of the Russian Federation, you said that the municipalities are served by conscientious, responsible people, experienced people, and professional people. Of course, we have the majority of such people, because some do not even have the opportunity to go on vacation and somehow give themselves the opportunity to relax. They really work seven days a week and without vacations.

We also have some difficult situations, and people complain to us about this and say that this or that employee does not meet the requirements. We pay attention to this, and objectively there are such cases.

Therefore, I would like to thank our residents at this table for telling us about this, and we are making timely adjustments to our work. This is very important for us, because today the "Municipal Dialogue" is coming out on top. We work openly with Municipal Dialog. Today, these are both social networks and direct lines, which we conduct on a quarterly basis. We have seven district heads, and they all draw "straight lines" on a quarterly basis in order to understand what is happening. This is where we can get help from the MCRs that you have set up, including our municipal centers, which are now integrated into this work. We now understand what to do.

We really make our own plans in cooperation with the residents. As my colleague Yuri [Shalabaev] said, if earlier we made a decision on road repairs in the following way: the laboratory went through, evaluated the road network, compiled a register and completed the work, but today we do it at the request of residents. They tell us what to do. In Krasnoyarsk, they told us how we would decide on the names of metro stations that are currently being actively built. Each station was discussed with residents. Today we discussed the places where you need to make parks and squares. Again, somewhere there was a vacant lot, some kind of landfill, some kind of unsettled territory. And there are dozens of such objects, which were made at the request of residents.

It was necessary to build a polyclinic in one of the large residential districts. There were two places. We thought for a long time and believed that objectively the clinic should be here. No, they held a vote, [people] voted for a completely different territory. The effectiveness of interaction gives the same high result.

And if you remember what Sergey Vladilenovich Kiriyenko said yesterday. He said that the result of our work is estimated not by square meters, not by billions of rubles spent, but still by the attitude of residents, by the responsiveness of residents and the comfortable environment that exists in our cities. After all, the well-being of residents is our main task. We understand how to solve it.

Thank you.

Vladimir Putin: I have nothing to add, except that Krasnoyarsk is the geographical center of the Russian Federation. Bearing in mind the need for balanced development of territories, of course, we should also think about the development of Krasnoyarsk as one of the centers of Russia.

By and large, I would think, as I have already said, that if not the federal authorities, then some structures operating in Siberia should be transferred there. Just like RusHydro. I spoke with the head of RusHydro, Viktor Viktorovich [Khmarin] a few years ago. It creaked and creaked, saying that employees would not go, it would be difficult to find specialists on the spot. They go, in the end the decision is made, they move.

You know what I just want to ask you. Vladislav Anatolyevich, you can help them if they need to buy some office space, choose places to create appropriate offices, and so on. We need to help them, because at first the company had difficulties there, as far as I remember.

V. Loginov: We are ready. We are in contact with them. We will definitely provide social facilities as well, and now we are looking at what will be available for their employees.

Vladimir Putin: For Krasnoyarsk, this is only a plus.

Vladimir Loginov: It is true.

Vladimir Putin: And they had to fight a little bit there. There was a case. But the process is ongoing.

Vladimir Loginov: It's fine.

Vladimir Putin: They are not themselves. I'm the one pushing them out there. They don't want to, or at least they didn't want to go anywhere, they are comfortable here in Moscow. But we need to develop the territories, we need to transfer the competence centers to the territories where these companies work. RusHydro's main activity is in the east, in Siberia. Why should they stay in Moscow? And it's good for Krasnoyarsk, in my opinion.

V. Loginov: We are working with them and will create all the necessary conditions. Plus, we are currently preparing: we have a large student community, we have quite good, trained specialists in this industry – in the energy and hydropower industries, and we will provide them accurately. We know that 70 percent of them will come from our territory.

Vladimir Putin: Help them. I'll think about what else to do in the same way. You see, this, in my opinion, will only benefit the development of Krasnoyarsk, the surrounding territories, and the east of the country in general. The geographical center of Russia is Krasnoyarsk, and Russia should develop so evenly throughout its territory.

Vladimir Loginov: Good job, thank you.

Vladimir Putin: Thank you for your work.

You are welcome.

Rudenko city: Rudenko Galina Ivanovna, Krasnogvardeysky district, Belgorod region.

Dear Vladimir Vladimirovich,

My colleagues today touch on the most relevant topics related to large and small cities and rural settlements.

Let me also say something about a topic that is in the heart of almost every person in our large country today.

78 years ago, the collective West did not learn a lesson, and after so much time, we again had to fight fascism, repeating the feat of our ancestors-participants in the Great Patriotic War.

Our soldiers on the front line perform their combat tasks, and in the rear, our residents have united shoulder to shoulder. Thousands of people, regardless of their place of residence, religion or status, are helping the front. People of different professions, our old people and children daily weave nets, write letters, pour trench candles. And this is the desire of everyone, it can not be appeased. Everyone wants to make a part of themselves and bring victory closer.

An example in the Belgorod region is "Soldatsky Prival", where for almost two years women and men have been preparing hot food for our servicemen in large cauldrons every day. There is hot tea, always fresh pastries, there is home comfort for our children.

Parcels are being sent from all over the country to the border area. Help is being collected by our residents, people all over the country. We are well aware that our servicemen do not need anything, but the desire to help is not appeased. The genetic code of a Russian is really simple: the desire to warm, to sympathize and love, to help others, that's all.

I would like to express my gratitude from all residents of the Belgorod region for the feeling of unity, support and care for our residents and our military personnel.

You have repeatedly spoken about supporting the families of participants in a special military operation. This is our direct responsibility, because we should not leave them alone with their problems. The heads of municipalities and rural settlements are in direct contact with the family members of the participants of the special military operation, and they come to us with problems. They expect from us not only a solution, but also just human attention.

In fact, the help is insignificant: someone has a fence collapsed, a picket fence, somewhere a slate sheet needs to be corrected, but mostly this is a really heartfelt conversation. Every chapter visits our families at their place of residence.

You know, when you come in, have a cup of tea, talk, it probably becomes easier for us and our families. This heartfelt warmth, this heartfelt conversation, there is no substitute for it.

I want to say that this feeling of unity that we have, it is impossible to convey. We are united, and we are with you.

Vladimir Putin: Thank you very much, Galina Ivanovna.

First of all, I would like to say that I would like to express my gratitude to you and all the people who live in these border areas for their courage and solidarity. We will do everything possible to support them.

And about you and your colleagues at the municipal level: I know how people behave heroically under shelling, I mean municipal employees, they help the elderly, children, and women – this is just really a manifestation of the best features of the national character.

In this regard, I would like to say the following. Maybe it didn't get through, but I don't think it was widely spread here. Most recently, the former president of the Czech Republic said a very frank, very important thing, he said publicly just a few days ago: "The war in Ukraine,"he said," did not start in February 2022, but in the summer of 2008, when the decision was made...". Our media outlets have already given it, right?

Remark: Yes.

Vladimir Putin: All right. I will still repeat: "... when the decision was made to open the doors to NATO for Ukraine and Georgia."

Let me remind you that Ukraine gained its independence on the basis of the Declaration of Independence. And there it was written that Ukraine is a neutral state. The 2008 decision radically changed the situation in Eastern Europe and in terms of ensuring Russia's security.

And in addition, in 2014, there was also a coup d'etat, and the declaration of Russians in Ukraine as a non-titular nation. This was followed by a whole series of other decisions that nullified, in fact led to what is happening now in Latvia, in other Baltic republics: when Russian people are simply thrown out of the cordon. You see, these are very serious things that directly affect the security of our country. And in 2014, after the coup d'etat, just fighting began in the Donbass, they unleashed a hot war. All this has led to the tragedy that we are experiencing today.

And what is happening now, namely the cohesion of our society, the strengthening of our economy, not only in agriculture, but also in industry, the growth of the potential of the Armed Forces – this is a complete surprise for the enemy. Complete and absolute.

What is happening in the surrounding areas? Just people from the outside ask:" Why do the Kiev authorities do what they do: they shell peaceful cities, settlements, hit squares, what is the military sense in this?" Why do they do this? There is an answer.

The first is to show your people and their sponsors, who provide money, weapons, and ammunition, that they are able to respond to Russia's actions when Russia, in order to solve one of the main tasks – the demilitarization of Ukraine – delivers pinpoint strikes on military infrastructure and enterprises of the military-industrial complex throughout the entire depth of Ukrainian territory with high-precision weapons. range of action. Here they are trying to show that they can also do something. But instead of solving military tasks, they act in such a barbaric way: they simply strike at peaceful settlements, and not with selective weapons, but with a multiple launch rocket system, they simply beat the squares and that's all.

The second task. By refusing to negotiate… They also refused to negotiate, let me remind you that we agreed on everything in Istanbul. I'm telling you, representatives of the municipal authorities, and all Russian citizens, of course, should know this, but you work directly with people. We agreed on everything. Moreover, the head of the negotiation group on the Ukrainian side even signed it. The signature is worth it, we have the document lying around. We were only told: we need to give some kind of sign that Russia really intends to resolve these issues peacefully, we need to withdraw our troops from Kiev. They were taken away. A day later, they threw all the agreements in the trash. Now they have said publicly, including the head of this very negotiating group, and he, by the way, the head of the ruling party in the parliament, in the Rada, said: "Yes, we were ready. We missed it, because the then Prime Minister of Great Britain, Mr. Johnson, came and persuaded us not to implement these agreements." Well, assholes, no? To say directly :" If we had done this, everything would have been finished long ago, a year and a half ago." It just underlines once again that they are not independent people. This is clear to everyone, and it is obvious to the whole world.

But that's not all. Of course, one of the main tasks of strikes of this kind is to distract the attention of its own population and sponsors, again, from the complete failure of the so-called counteroffensive, complete and absolute.

As for this negotiation process, it is an attempt to encourage us to abandon the gains that we have made over the past year and a half. It's impossible. Everyone understands that this is impossible: both they, the ruling circles in Ukraine, understand this, and the Western elites understand this. Everyone understands that these so-called formulas of peace, which are being discussed in the West and in Ukraine, are a continuation of the implementation of the decree of the President of Ukraine banning negotiations with Russia. That's what it is. These are prohibitive requirements for the negotiation process.

If they don't want to, don't. It's just that if what is going on now continues, what is taking place now, and now, it is quite obvious, not only has their counteroffensive failed, but the initiative is completely in the hands of the Russian Armed Forces. If this continues, the Ukrainian statehood may be dealt an irreparable, very serious blow. But this is their area of responsibility. This will then be the result of their policies, their rule.

As for our citizens, especially those living in these territories, I would like to once again express my gratitude for their courage and solidarity. And all those who work there, municipal employees, of course, I ask you to continue this service in the same mode as it is now.

I just yesterday congratulated the Governor of the Belgorod region on his birthday. We discussed all these issues in great detail.

G. Rudenko: Thank you very much.

Vladimir Putin: Thank you.

Alexander Suvorov: Dear Vladimir Vladimirovich,

Alexey Suvorov, Head of the Mari-Tyurek City Administration of the Republic of Mari El.

Let me tell you my life story. In our family of Suvorovs there is a Hero of the Soviet Union Sergey Romanovich. He went to the front in 1941 at the age of 19. He, the commander, as part of a group of submachine gunners took the battle near Kaluga. Left alone, the wounded man, bleeding profusely, fought an unequal battle throughout the day. It was only in the dead of night that the paramedics were able to carry him out of the battlefield. 22 enemy soldiers were found around his trench. My grandfather fought in the great war, and we won it. A peaceful life ensued.

And now, once again, the fascist evil spirits have raised their heads. And we, the descendants of our grandfathers and great-grandfathers, did not sit at home. I, like many municipal employees, decided to volunteer to defend our Homeland, the peaceful sky and the future of our country, otherwise I could not. First, the surname obliges-Suvorov, and secondly, in our family it is so accepted.

We have female leaders here: one has four sons, and the father of these sons is now on the front line, and the other colleague heroically lost her husband.

Right now, there is no more important task than protecting our Motherland and its new frontiers. We'll do our best. In the rear, our wives, mothers and grandmothers knit socks and mittens, weave camouflage nets, and our children write letters to soldiers at the front. Our fighters, reading them, carefully store them, and this gives them great strength and self-confidence.

Vladimir Vladimirovich, when we were based in the Luhansk region, we found books written in Ukrainian that praise NATO soldiers and how these soldiers came to establish peace on Ukrainian soil, and we, "Muscovites", as they call Russians, are enemies and enemies of the Ukrainian people. We don't want them to come to us and brainwash our children with false and distorted information. There is no doubt that the enemy will be defeated and victory will be ours.

Vladimir Putin: Alexey Nikolaevich, you have told us about your family. After all, this is what makes up our entire society, everything is passed down from generation to generation. This is not only due to your sonorous surname-Suvorov, but also due to the fact that we have always treated our loved ones, our families, and our Homeland in general with such care. This is a tradition that is really passed down from heart to heart. This can be read. But the information you read will never have such an impact on a person, as a personal example of those people whom we infinitely respect and try to imitate is our parents. We don't even understand it, we don't notice it, it's just sitting in the subcortex. It just sits in the subcortex.

I have already said that I read the letters of my grandfather, who wrote to his son at the front, and this is how he wrote. You know, there is one point that I didn't mention, which I will tell you about now. He tells how his grandmother died in his arms because a bullet hit her in the stomach, she bled to death and died in his arms. He writes to his son: "You beat these reptiles..." and so on. But, you know, what a curious moment, in my opinion, for all the peoples of Russia – both for the Russian people and for other peoples of Russia, which I drew attention to. He writes in a letter to his son: "My mother is dying in my arms." And he (her husband) says: "Don't cry, don't make me sad." Do you have any idea what this is? That's what really hurt me. That is, she knows that she is dying, but she loves her husband so much, she tells him: "Don't cry." She thinks of him now, as she dies: "Don't upset me." It seems to me that this attitude to each other and to the Motherland is deeply embedded in the blood of our people. It is impossible to defeat such a people.

And those who try to switch to some traditions that are alien to us, to some internal signals that are alien to us, as you said, turn to NATO and so on, are people who have already lost everything before they start doing anything. They betrayed their ancestors, betrayed their people and their interests. Traitors never win for long. They can snatch something, steal something, drag it away and eat it somewhere under the blanket. But success will never be on their side. And even more so if they put obvious Nazis and Hitler's accomplices on the podium. Well, how can it be! A few decades ago, their ancestors fought against Nazism, and today they support it. Such people, by definition, cannot win.

The brains there were composted to people, they talked about some kind of independence. No one has ever attempted to kill her. And in general, it is not clear what it is. This isn't the right place, and we don't have time for that. But we have always defended our interests and will defend them now.

Thank you very much.

You are welcome.

Alexander Apshev: May I ask your permission, Mr President?

Vladimir Putin: Please.

A. Apshev: Albert Apshev is the head of the city of Alchevsk in the Luhansk People's Republic.

Now, listening carefully to you and your colleagues, I am simply overwhelmed with a sense of pride for our soldiers who are fighting on the front line, for all those who work in the rear for the benefit of Russia, for the volunteers who help the front, and for all those who overcome military hardships in the front-line territories.

I represent a new region myself. I want to tell you that Donbass and Novorossiya are such a vivid embodiment of the truth today that the Russians do not abandon their own people. Assistance and support are simply felt in all areas: in the socio-economic development, in the construction of critical infrastructure, in improving the health of our children, in helping them integrate into the legal, cultural and sports space.

Vladimir Vladimirovich, literally the whole country has come together and is helping us build a peaceful life, helping us with full dedication. So, probably, only Russian people can help.

I'll give you an example. In our municipality alone, in 2023, we changed more than 6 kilometers of main heating mains, carried out unprecedented road repairs, built 15 thousand square meters of housing stock, reconstructed the park and sports grounds. All this gives us confidence that life in the Donbas is being revived, and people are looking forward to the future with optimism. Of course, there are a number of unresolved issues with both housing and water supply. But with the strong support that you provide, Mr Putin, that the country and the whole of Russia provide, we know that we can do everything.

I would also like to mention the assistance that is being provided to us as managers. Just recently, we held the first elections on our territory. Now we are forming municipal authorities and we are in urgent need of highly qualified specialists and professionals for further municipal service.

And here, of course, the Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration, the federal executive authorities, and Senezh are also great helpers for us. More than 90 percent of our specialists at various levels have already been retrained in these organizations.

Separately, I would like to highlight (as you mentioned today) the School of Mayors educational platform. I, like many colleagues from our community, am a listener of this program. For the managers of Donbass and Novorossiya, it is doubly unique and doubly important. I literally do not have time for my colleagues to write down the positive practices that have already been implemented in their managerial experience.

If doctors, teachers, and engineers have always had a place to teach, and there is such a good tradition in this regard, then such an educational center has been created for us on your behalf, and this is very cool. Thank you very much for this.

I would also like to mention a very powerful vector of support for the development of our municipalities – the All-Russian Association for the Development of Local Self-Government. I will express my personal opinion, and this opinion coincides with the absolute number of my colleagues: in addition to the huge baggage of practical and methodological assistance that we receive there, probably the most important thing is that we feel in the circle of like-minded people, friends, colleagues who are ready to lend a shoulder in a difficult moment.

You have called 2024 the Year of the Family, and I want to tell you with confidence that our people, people of honest work and, I am sure, people who will contribute to the development of our big, great country, have arrived in the big family of the peoples of Russia.

Thank you, Vladimir Vladimirovich, for everything.

Vladimir Putin: First of all, Albert Ruslanovich, first of all, I would like to say that you have just concluded that the new regions are also working actively. All right. We have already started paying taxes to the federal budget. However, the support from the federal budget is very decent. This was made possible thanks to the rhythmic and confident work of the economy, the entire financial and economic sphere of the country. You know about GDP growth, the work of the financial and banking system. This allowed us to send more than 1 trillion rubles, 1 trillion 77 billion, to new regions. That's a lot of money.

Using the example of the Luhansk Republic, you have just noticed that some issues are being resolved. Not everything, probably, is solved as we would like. I know that the water pipeline in Donetsk is not working as we expected, and there is still a lot to do. And you have it in Luhansk. I recently only spoke with the head of the republic on this issue.

It is important that industrial enterprises start working, which is great. This is a good industrial, large region, in general, the whole of Luhansk, especially Donetsk.

I have already mentioned this in my time, and I have personally read the archive documents. The leaders of the Donetsk-Kryvyi Rih Republic, when the Soviet Union was being formed, did not think of themselves otherwise than as part of the RSFSR, and it seems that they agreed with the central authorities about this. But Vladimir Ilyich Lenin decided, as he put it, this is a direct speech, "to decide", and transferred it to Ukraine.

When the leaders of this Donetsk-Kryvyi Rih republic came and said: "How so? We had an agreement. We do not think of ourselves otherwise than as part of Russia, "he said:" We must decide again." Because representatives of the emerging Ukraine came and said, also literally: "Why are you leaving us with only men?" Because the representatives of agriculture were considered petty-bourgeois elements, and it was difficult to build communism with them. Technically, at least, that was the reason. This is true in archival documents, these are recorded conversations. They are in our State Archive. I asked for them and read them myself. This is a direct phrase: "We must decide again." They come and say, " How is it? We agreed." He says: "We must decide again." We decided again, and now we are faced with the situation that we are experiencing today.

After the collapse of the Soviet Union, it was obvious that we would eventually come to this. Of course, I think that at the time of the collapse, they probably thought that the fundamental ties between Ukraine and Russia would be stronger than the opportunistic considerations of the nationalist part of society. Moreover, the Declaration of Independence, I repeat once again, stated that Ukraine is a neutral state. But no, these nationalist elements turned out to be more aggressive and started pushing their agenda, and everything led to the current situation.

But the people who lived in these territories, of course (you probably know better than even I do), always did not think of themselves as anything other than part of Russia, this is an obvious thing. Therefore, the voting results were as follows.

I always say this: no one will force you to come to the police station. Probably, everything can be rigged – just as in the United States they rigged previous elections, through voting by mail. It is clear what voting by mail is: they bought ballots for $ 10, entered them, and without any observation from observers, threw them into mailboxes, and that's all.

But you can't force them to come, you can't force them at gunpoint. If people didn't want to, they just wouldn't come to the polling stations, that's all. This is called "voting with your feet". They also came and voted here. What is it if it is not a democracy? The expression of the will of the people is democracy.

Therefore, if they try to sing something about the democracy that they are trying to impose on us from over the hill, they will not succeed, primarily because people think differently. They want to be with Russia and be together with Russia. They are part of Russia today, and we will do everything possible to solve the problems you face. We will definitely help you.

Alexander Apshev: Thank you very much.

Roman Kukharuk: Mr President, may I ask your permission?

Vladimir Putin: Yes, please.

R. Kukharuk: Co-chairman of the All-Russian Association for the Development of Local Self-Government, head of the city of Tyumen Ruslan Kukharuk.

You have already talked about a wonderful exhibition today.

Vladimir Putin: Tyumen is a rich city.

R. Kukharuk: Thank you. Our city is rich primarily in people.

Today we have already talked about our All-Russian Municipal Forum. This is, of course, the first large-scale event when 7.5 thousand of our colleagues from all over Russia came to Moscow. Many people say that this is the first time in the capital of our Homeland. And the fact that it is being held at the VDNH site, at the site of the exhibition "Russia" - this, of course, allowed a lot of people to see the pavilions.

My colleagues and heads of government and I also walked around the pavilions, visited the stands of the regions. And of course, we would like to express our gratitude for this wonderful idea – to gather the main and best achievements of our country in one place, at VDNH, to show people the history, culture, and modern large-scale projects of our regions, territories, and republics that are being implemented.

You know, we watched and saw the emotions of people, our fellow countrymen, when they left the exhibition, they coincided with our emotions. This is pride, pride for our region, pride for our country and confidence in the future of our country, because with such a heritage, with such potential, and most importantly, with people who implement such large-scale projects, we will really overcome all difficulties.

More than 4.5 million people have already visited the exhibition, and this flow is inexhaustible, it continues. But we objectively understand, and we also discussed this with our colleagues, that, of course, not every resident of our country will be able to come to Moscow and see the exhibition live, and it is already ending on April 12. Vladimir Vladimirovich, I would like to preserve the legacy of this wonderful project, make it live, give it a second life, and not only in Moscow, but in all regions of our country. It would be possible, for example, to create some kind of platforms, exhibition spaces, methodological centers in our administrative centers of the regions, which could present the palette of all those changes, all those best projects that exist in our country.

It would also be possible, for example, to move this exhibition space there, and to place pavilions and stands from VDNKh directly in the regions when the exhibition is completed. We could place it in neighboring subjects.

But the most important task (we discussed with the municipal community) is to fully disclose all the municipalities in the region. Unfortunately, not everyone could present absolutely all the diversity of our municipalities in the country within the framework of the exhibition "Russia" in the days of regions. Unfortunately, it happens that people do not know not only what is happening or happening, or what is happening in another part of the country, and sometimes they do not even know what is happening in the neighboring district. It would be such a great opportunity to tell about the region and share and be proud of all that is there, and, in fact, improve the tourist potential.

It is clear that we need some kind of coordination, some kind of unified approach, common standards, and stylistics. Maybe we should create a center in Moscow, and in the regions some kind of representative offices, offices that could just present all the opportunities and achievements of the regions. If you support this initiative, we would be happy to work on this initiative with both regional governments and the Presidential Administration.

Vladimir Putin: Ruslan Nikolaevich, you are right. As I understand it, everyone thinks so, this is a successful experiment. We just wanted to show what has been done over the past decades, over a couple of decades, how the country has been going, what tasks it has solved, what has happened, what has succeeded, maybe something has failed somewhere. But in general, our joint work has led to such results, some of which can be described and shown at this exhibition.

Over 4 million people have already visited the exhibition. It was a success. It's a pity, of course, that it will end. I haven't told anyone yet, I can honestly say, but I want to ask my colleagues to at least extend it, maybe for the summer period. After all, a large number will be…

Replica: Just in time for a vacation.

Replica: With the kids.

Vladimir Putin: Yes, a large number of people come to Moscow, millions of people, and they will be happy to come. And how it can be further broadcast to the country, to the regions-we will think about it, I will ask my colleagues, they will do it.

R. Kukharuk: Thank you.

I. Guseva: Even our leaders yesterday, Mr Putin, asked many people :" Well, did you like it?" - "Liked it". "Were there?" – No, we've never been."

And this is such a moment, it stimulates: I saw someone, was happy and plus took something for myself. I always want it to be not worse, but even better.

Vladimir Putin: Yes, absolutely, you're right, exactly. You are absolutely right, Irina Mikhailovna.

Roman Kukharuk: Thank you, Mr President.

Olga Slyusareva: Vladimir Vladimirovich, Olga Slyusareva is the head of the Tula municipality.

Today, indeed, for all of us, such a topic as patriotism is more important than ever. And this is a feeling that really can never be imposed by force.

The hero city of Tula never surrendered to the enemy. Every corner of our city is imbued with patriotism, our governor Alexey Gennadyevich Dyumin is a Hero of Russia, every Tula citizen is a patriot. And I, as a mother, want to say that this feeling is really brought up only in the family, in a real family, absorbed with mother's milk.

My children's great-grandfather is a Hero of the Soviet Union, who fought for Kerch during the Great Patriotic War. My son is a graduate of the Nakhimov School in St. Petersburg. And, as Alexey Nikolaevich Suvorov said, the father of my children is in the zone of free defense: a year and a half ago he practically left as a volunteer, three days ago he was discharged from the hospital and returned to the front line again.

I want to say that there are many of us – heads of municipalities where husbands and sons are defending their homeland in the family today. This is true patriotism, which is really passed down from generation to generation, from tradition to tradition, and our task today is to preserve real family values, real traditions.

2024 is the Year of the Family. Again, I would even like to brag that our association is rich in large families. Even today, we have three daughters here – the head of the Georgievsky district of the Stavropol Territory. I have four boys. Our wonderful Irina Mikhailovna, our manager, is rich in grandchildren – she has seven grandchildren. There are families where foster children are brought up. There are families with special children.

Vladimir Vladimirovich, thanks to you, our children today have a great opportunity to learn and develop in any direction. We are building wonderful schools, kindergartens, and sports schools. Taking into account the fact that almost every yard has a sports field, not only children are engaged in sports, but the older generation leads a healthy lifestyle. In our country, modern perinatal centers are being opened, where newborns [weighing] 500 grams are being saved, and where mothers today receive the highest quality medical care.

Vladimir Vladimirovich, thank you very much for the fact that today every Russian family feels your full support, for the fact that you give your all to the people and the country.

If I may, as a woman, I would like to wish you, Vladimir Vladimirovich, to always remain in the same wonderful sports form, with a great sense of humor. I would like to sincerely wish you and your loved ones health and well-being.

Thank you very much.

Vladimir Putin: Thank you.

Olga Anatolyevna, thank you. And send your best wishes to your husband and his fellow soldiers.

O. Slyusareva: Thank you. Necessarily.

Vladimir Putin: Was he on vacation?" No?

Olga Slyusareva: He signed a contract in September. In December, I returned, because this was the situation: either they were captured, or... they managed to escape, get out, but all their documents were burned. He was coming back. Up to the token, everything was lost there. Documents were restored. And in April, he left again. And three days ago, he was discharged from the hospital and returned to the front line.

Vladimir Putin: He should stay at home. What is he? The kids must have missed you.

O. Slyusareva: He said: "When the time comes, I'll go on vacation."

Vladimir Putin: All right. Fine. Send my greetings and best wishes.

And as for Tula, it is, of course, a legendary city, a city of gunsmiths. We will soon have events related to the development of the defense industry there. So, I hope we will be able to visit Tula.

2024, indeed, is not accidentally declared the Year of the Family. This is a national event aimed at strengthening our traditional values, on which, as I have already said, we are trying to build the entire Russian statehood as a foundation.

This is important not only for solving demographic problems, although it is the most important direction in strengthening the family, increasing the population, and preserving the Russian people, but this in itself is important precisely as the moral foundation of statehood. It is also very important that you have four children, and I understand that there are other colleagues here who have such large families with many children. This is very cool.

Do you know what I noticed? Of course, there is no mass movement – I just have something to do with it, I sign the relevant papers – but there are more and more people who want to return to their homeland from those who left.

It is difficult to raise children in the conditions that are being created in some Western countries today. Sorry, shared toilets for boys and girls, something like that. It has already become such a household, everyday thing. Those who once left for various reasons, many are already returning or are thinking of returning. It is very difficult to live in such conditions for people with traditional, normal human values. And we will do everything possible to preserve them, to preserve this cultural code of the peoples of our country.

Thank you very much. Good luck.

Sergey Nadsadin: Dear Vladimir Vladimirovich,

I represent the Far East. Mayor of Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk Sergey Nadsadin.

I would like to remind you that 10 years ago you initiated and adopted all the relevant documents on the development of the Far East.

Historically and in general, very little time has passed, but we can already see the changes. I often exchange with my colleagues – mayors from the Far East, and everyone sees a positive trend, and everyone notes it.

As for Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk. Not so long ago, you talked on the phone with a little girl named Kristina. Thanks to you, in fact, her childhood dream came true – she visited Lake Baikal together with her parents. When you asked her dad how the city is, where you live, and what changes are taking place, Dad said without hesitation that the city is changing. It was noticeable.

Vladimir Putin: I remember, of course.

Sergey Nadsadin: Thank you.

Just the other day, when you were on a visit to the Far East, you held a meeting with entrepreneurs in Khabarovsk. One of our entrepreneurs was there, and I think he was proud to tell you how he, a young investor and entrepreneur in general, has already completed the construction of two hotels in the Gorny Vozdukh advanced development area (this is our rather famous resort in the Far East) and is now engaged in the third major project-a gastronomic space.

In general, I can say that all over the Far East, especially in the capital cities, such business involvement has already become the norm. That is, everyone wants to build something. This is due to competent measures and the benefits that the state has created for business.

I would like to say that at the same meeting you expressed your intention to visit the Kuril Islands. I can tell you that you will definitely not regret it. This is a place of amazing beauty, surprisingly cute, majestic, divinely beautiful.

Recently, regional and municipal authorities have been doing a lot to make the hospitality industry better and life in the Kuril Islands better for citizens, so that all citizens can feel it.

Vladimir Putin: A girl alone about the airport…

Sergey Nadsadin: Yes.

Vladimir Putin: This was unexpected for me, because I know that the airport is a good one, a new one was built there, but apparently the lighting equipment does not work in the right mode.

Sergey Nadsadin: There are indeed frequent fogs there, and it seems that this component should be strengthened. I think it's because of that. This is a non-standard airport, and the Kuril Islands are a non-standard place.

And, as a result, the tourist flow has actually increased recently. But in general, if we talk about the Sakhalin Region, I believe that thanks to those state measures, the activity of the governor, our regional government, in just three years-from 2020 to 2023-we moved from 43rd place in the investment attractiveness rating to fourth place. I think this is such a leap.

Vladimir Putin: From 43rd to fourth?

Sergey Nadsadin: From 43rd in 2020 to fourth now.

Vladimir Putin: That's great. I congratulate you.

Sergey Nadsadin: Thank you.

Vladimir Putin: It's true. Indeed, this is the result.

Sergey Nadsadin: Thank you very much.

You also said in Khabarovsk that you approve and supported comprehensive plans for the development of cities and agglomerations in the Far East, and you have previously reviewed the master plans of these cities, and the Government has supported these plans.

I think that this will give a very serious impetus to the development of our cities, in order to raise the quality of life to another level. In fact, I think these were strategic decisions. As a resident of the Far East and Sakhalin, I want to sincerely thank you for these decisions, because we feel this directly, we feel it every day.

And as a municipal employee, I want to thank you for your attention to our municipal community, because, believe me, this is very valuable and expensive for us. And I am sure that we will justify your trust.

Thank you.

Vladimir Putin: Sakhalin is indeed developing at a very good pace. The income level of the population is growing noticeably. And you are now in terms of demographics-it is improving after all, right? In my opinion, there is even an influx of people there, in Sakhalin?

Sergey Nadsadin: Mr President, we had a failure in the 1990s. I was born there, it's all before my eyes. Now, indeed, at least in Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk, the dynamics are always positive, but in general we expect an influx, because we create both jobs and housing for people with good education.

We are going to improve technologically, not just sit on the "oil needle", as they say now, because there is actually a lot of hydrocarbon on Sakhalin, and this gives us 60-70 percent of our consolidated budget. But issues related to hydrogen, the hydrogen landfill, and the construction of an engineering school are our future, 100 percent.

Vladimir Putin: I congratulate you on these results. Of course, we understand that the results of the development of the economy as a whole, the enterprises that operate there, are significant… But still, creating conditions for people, even for the same business – is very important, and this is largely the result of your work. So thank you very much.

Sergey Nadsadin: Thank you very much.

Irina Guseva: Mr President, we will tell you honestly that we are so pleased to communicate with you.

Vladimir Putin: Thank you.

I. Guseva: We really thank you for this... you know, for the first time – for the first time in my life, of course, but recently we learned from those who are older in the municipal service: they say that at one of the party congresses 5 thousand people gathered once in the history of the USSR, and today we gathered 7 thousand chapters.

At the same time, Mr Putin, these are 7,000 chapters, plus the expert community, plus all levels of government. And we, of course, would like to tell you about ourselves ad infinitum. I will tell you honestly, our community is serious, we often meet-once a month-on various issues, I reported to you.

You know, when we were preparing to come here, everyone wanted: you can have me, but I would like this, but I would like to be here. Such pride was bursting, because what was and what became, as you say, at the exhibition, people saw it with their own eyes. You don't direct it, people see it, people understand it. And we have such people – you can't deceive them, they feel it in their gut. We have such a gene, you know, a heightened sense of justice, love.

But I can't do it now, our colleague just ate all his eyes, looking at me, and he asks me directly with his eyes: Irina Mikhailovna, please, I can't help but tell you about a small but very proud city that once became a single-industry city and also in the industrial sector of the economy, as in the development sector, rushed. These are Naberezhnye Chelny, Tatarstan, and, of course, the well-known KAMAZ enterprise. Of course, I can't help but give him my word, he will be offended, and then he will say: "Well, they didn't give him their word."

Vladimir Putin: Please.

Nikolai Magdeev: Dear Vladimir Vladimirovich,

Nail Magdeev, Mayor of Naberezhnye Chelny, Republic of Tatarstan.

The basis of any municipality's life is the economy, and so let me just briefly share with you the results of the work of large industrial enterprises in our municipal territories.

For the most part, large industrial enterprises are city-and budget-forming, and their financial condition determines the standard of living in cities and social well-being. Therefore, despite certain difficulties, our enterprises, thanks primarily to our people, labor collectives, and strong intellectual and industrial potential, continued their development.

A lot of work has been done on import substitution. For example, in the city of Naberezhnye Chelny: this year we have reached 700 billion rubles in terms of shipments, which is a large volume, with an increase in the industrial production index by 115 percent.

A few words about KAMAZ. KAMAZ is undoubtedly the flagship of our country's automotive industry, our national brand. And you, dear Vladimir Vladimirovich, have done a lot to make KAMAZ so successful today.

We know the history of KAMAZ, and we remember this. Therefore, many human thanks to you from the 50-thousandth (50 thousand works for KAMAZ) of our native KAMAZ, from the Republic of Tatarstan and the half-million city of Naberezhnye Chelny.

At the end of the year, I report that KAMAZ has produced 42 thousand trucks, and today, in the conditions of a special military operation, KAMAZ is adequately fulfilling all the tasks of providing the Armed Forces of our country with military equipment.

I will say more, Mr President: the difficulties have united us, the municipal authorities and businesses. We successfully solve not only production tasks, but also successfully solve social tasks, and first of all, we help the families of military personnel who are in the zone of special military operations, and, of course, most importantly, the families of our fallen soldiers.

We managed to achieve such results, and we discussed this with our colleagues today, thanks to the very prompt work of the Government of the Russian Federation. The Government of the Russian Federation and our government work very quickly, efficiently and efficiently. I have been working as the head of a municipal district for many years, and the time is short, but we see that the Government is working very, very efficiently.

For example, if we talk about the city of Naberezhnye Chelny, we are the largest single-industry city, and thanks to such an important tool as the territory of advanced development, we have been able to open 46 new factories in eight years (and we have been a TOP since 2016), attract 33 billion investments and create 9 thousand jobs. And there are quite a lot of such examples when large industrial cities work very efficiently.

In conclusion, Mr President, I would like to invite you to visit the city of Naberezhnye Chelny. There is a very good reason – 2026 marks the 50th anniversary of the release of the first truck, and 2026 marks the 400th anniversary of the founding of the city of Naberezhnye Chelny. These two significant dates are very important for our country: "KAMAZ "is a national treasure, very important for our multinational Republic of Tatarstan, important for our city. We are waiting for you to visit us. Рахим итегез. Big zur rahmat.

Thank you.

Vladimir Putin: Thank you.

Yes, Naberezhnye Chelny is really a special city and a special enterprise. I know that the first president of Tatarstan, Shaimiev Mintimer Sharipovich, did a lot of work, and we spent a lot of time saving KAMAZ in our time.

Nikolai Magdeev: Thank you. We remember that.

Vladimir Putin: This was done thanks to the republic, including thanks to the local authorities, and everyone helped. And now, of course, the shareholders and the labor collective have picked up and are carrying this banner very decently, this is true.

KAMAZ is an obvious leader in the automotive industry in Russia, but it is also one of the leaders in the global automotive industry, that's for sure. And then, so many times "Paris-Dakar" won, still it says something. We won all the time.

So thank you very much for the results, they are obvious in Tatarstan in general and in Naberezhnye Chelny as well. This is, of course, the result of your and your team's work.

"Difficulties have brought us together" - you said, I even marked it. But you probably noticed and noticed that on Christmas Day I met with the families of children who did not return from combat missions, with their widows, with their children. And one of them said: "You know, it will all end sometime, but the grandmothers and volunteers who work with us to support the children on the front line, they are asking an unusual question." I say, " Which one?" – When it's all over, how can we maintain the cohesion that has developed in society?" This, of course, is also a reflection of our national character.

And by the way, we should all think about it. I am now writing to you, to you and to all my colleagues. Of course, everyone should think about this: both federal and regional authorities, but this state, the preservation of such a state of society – a state of cohesion-probably depends even more on you than on anyone else. Let's think about it. This is really important.

Thank you very much again.

Nikolai Magdeev: Thank you, Mr President.

Irina Guseva: Mr President, I think all our colleagues will agree with me now. Listening to you, we have gathered today and on your initiative at the site of the Ministry Award, we have seen these people who came up to you on the stage, we have seen those people who were sitting in the audience. When you talk about unity, Mr Putin, you yourself have been showing us by example all this time how to serve, how to truly love the Motherland, how to change and change together with the country only for the better. Challenges have always been and will always be, they were different. Today, Olga Anatolyevna [Slyusareva] said, Mr Putin, when you came, we couldn't save the children, our ambulance didn't move – there was no petrol. We are an amazing people-we forget where we started.

And I want to tell you that this award "Service", " Municipal Dialogue "and the All-Russian Municipal Forum once again showed us all that even when there are" direct lines", Mr Putin, we discussed this, I want you to know. We want to apologize to you, because so many issues are of local significance, and you have never shown, either by your eyes or actions, that there are any federal or regional issues for you, and you share this. And this is exactly how my colleagues and I solved this question for ourselves in the community: when a person comes to us, our task – following your example – is to answer the question here and now, solve it, and help them. And finally, we need to open these hearts, realizing that people come to us not because they don't like our shirt or need something from us personally, because we are the authorities, because we are on the front line-what I was talking about – next to people and for the sake of people.

If we solve these issues, feeling this pain as our own, perceiving them as our fellow countrymen, and there is so much in the word "fellow countrymen", I think that the result is not long in coming, people are grateful.

Mothers, wives, and children are waiting from the front line today. And our colleagues, our team – we, Mr Putin, also do nothing alone, the team does everything. And behind these people who are here, there are large, close-knit teams. And the volunteers you mentioned, the volunteers, are also a big team, a national, Russian family. We have someone to rally around, we have something to live around, we have something to preserve what our ancestors left us. And those who do not know the Russian character – we kneel only in front of the icon.

So if someone thought that our great Russian people, and "Russian" is a collective image, multinational, beautiful, with traditions and customs. Even here, Mr Putin. Here is our representative from Yakutia, he tells us today: "You keep in mind, do not invite me to visit you. Vladimir Vladimirovich promised us." And your fellow countrymen from Kronstadt say: "Do you understand that Vladimir Vladimirovich is ours?" And we understand that you are everyone. Everyone wants you to understand this human emotion, when you enter the hall, you see it, you don't direct it. The people are grateful.

To say that the people can be deceived-no. Isn't there a problem? You were told today: I have seven grandchildren and a family. Ask them: do we have any problems at home? There is. They are present in every family, in every person. But if we only grieve, if we only think that there is a problem, then we need to solve it, and we can only solve it with you, our beloved president, the national leader. I convey this emotion to you. And we are doing our job, you know, maybe not so bright, somewhere, maybe in such small settlements, not in such big cities, but we will try very hard not to let down our people, not to let down our old people, our youth. Because today we realized once again: we are on the right track, we are in a good team. And, you know, I'm sorry, but I can't help but tell you this. When I asked people about the forum and our meeting, do you know what question they asked? “We're going to meet a lot, aren't we? Can I come again? Are we going to meet again next year?”

And when you said today that at the exhibition of VDNH, the opportunity for such communication, to see the history, the country, was slightly extended, someone even joked: thanks to the sanctions, they began to travel around the country, and they began to see their homeland with different eyes. Let it be a joke, but in fact only our great people, only our original people, led by you, will do much, if not everything, while we are together.

Thank you simply in a human way, from the bottom of my heart from those who could not tell you this, and those who are now in the audience, and those who are now with people, and representatives of new territories, on the front line, not everyone could come. We'll just try to do what we can do instead of saying it. That's the most important thing. Thank you.

Vladimir Putin: Thank you.

Irina Mikhailovna, thank you very much for your kind words. They are, as they say in such cases, and the cat is pleased. Thank you. I know that everything is developing in Kronstadt, and I sometimes go there unnoticed. I like Kronstadt, and I enjoy being there.

What I would like to say in conclusion. I take it we're just finishing up, right, Irina Mikhailovna?

I. Guseva: We're not letting you go yet. We still have such a small question and a surprise for you. But we know that you are busy and we cannot afford to spend more time, although, Mr President, if we had the opportunity, we would invite you to drink tea and tell you a lot of things. We'll just keep working.

Vladimir Putin: Thank you very much, Irina Mikhailovna.

Irina Mikhailovna mentioned the "direct line". Do you know what I noticed? I tried to look at the screens on the left and right, and I wanted to respond to one message, but I didn't have time, because I had other questions. And it was so small, but in conclusion it was written: I will not vote for you.

That's why I remembered it. First, feedback is always very important. Second – we have much more unresolved problems than solved ones. And, in my opinion, Anatoly Ivanovich [Balbekov] said that the more we decide, the more horizons open up for people, and there is nothing wrong here, I will say directly, we want more, because other needs appear, and this is absolutely normal.

And when we are faced with the fact that someone is not completely satisfied with the tasks we solve or is not satisfied at all, we should always remember that there are more unsolved problems than solved ones. And there are a lot of people who need special attention from our side. For the most part, yes, we have slightly reduced the number of people living below the poverty line, but there are still a lot of them.

Yes, we have slightly raised real wages and real disposable incomes of the population, but there are still a lot of people living on such a modest level, especially families with children. And we have a lot to do. And in no case should any criticism of us be taken painfully, but we should take it as a guide to action. We need to be grateful to people for paying attention to those issues that we have not yet solved.

But you've done a lot in the past, and thank you very much for that.

Enjoy the day!

Quite remarkable testimony from so many giving an insight into the Russian character that tells us Non-Russians that they will continue to strengthen themselves because that’s what they know how to do. That the governance is good, but there’re always problems no matter how many get solved. We also learned about the deep level of democratic practices within Russia that Western Propaganda dismisses because it’s actually better than the West’s, and that can’t allowed to be known. Much commentary is made via the emphasis applied. Russia clearly is a Classic Conservative nation that preserves and honors its past while seeking to modernize and better its current condition, which begins with the people’s wellbeing. IMO, these two events demonstrate the vast chasm of differences in values between Russia and the West, or at least those of the Western elites as the common folk in many ways differ little from Russians. Yes, as Putin noted, dissenters exist within Russia, but they are few. And not voting for Putin doesn’t automatically mean a vote against Russia.

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