President Putin: Government Must Set Clear Market Rules, Create Predictable Economic Conditions in Timber Industry

While speaking yesterday at a meeting with the government, Vladimir Putin, Russia's President, said, 'Economic conditions as concerns timber industry must be made predictable. Most serious attention must be paid to the preservation of woods, Russia's natural wealth. This natural financial resource must be continually replenished in a civilised way'.

The President further said, 'The government must set clear and easy to understand rules for timber market and make sure the same people do not do both finances and administrating'. He emphasised the importance of 'creating an adequate legislative basis for timber industry' because 'our resources of wood are huge and sufficient for generating stable large inflow into the state treasury, yet somehow the output of the timber companies is now less than one third of what it was 10 years ago'.

The President believes that was caused by 'uncivilised relations on the market' because 'no conditions have been created for a long-term economic development in this industry, which continues to function in a pre-historic way'. He further pointed out the necessity of 'seriously treating the issue of long-term economic activities as concerns timber industry, including the creation of a system of both short and long-term leasing'.

'Statistics, as concerns timber industry, must also be perfected because we must know exactly what woods we have, what kinds, and what quality'. The President noted, 'Large vertically integrated companies and those capable of introducing hi-tech in the industry are beginning to form. They already fell timber, process it, output high quality products and, most importantly, take measures to replenish wood stock'.