Russia to stick to five priorities in economic restructuring, says Putin

ST. PETERSBURG, Russia, Nov. 21 (Xinhua) -- Russia will continue to implement its post-crisis measures for economic restructuring and development by adhering to five priorities, said Prime Minister Vladimir Putin on Saturday.

Russia's Prime Minister Vladimir Putin gestures during the Russia-Finland Forest Summit in St.Petersburg October 25, 2009.(Xinhua/Reuters File Photo)

Addressing the 11th national congress of the ruling United Russia Party, Putin, head of the party, said his government would focus on five priorities for economic development.

These include insuring the stable operation of leading enterprises while creating projects for technical revamp and modernization; promoting hi-tech exportation; developing housing and construction undertakings; stimulating domestic demand including car industry; and solving problems such as unemployment and cities with only a single industry.

Russia has planned to allocate more than 2 billion U.S. dollars to support its hi-tech exportation, said Putin.

The government will also launch a car scrapping program, under which each citizen who scraps a vehicle used for over 10 years can get some 1,786 dollars for new car purchasing, he said.

In addition, around 1.3 billion dollars will be used to promote employment.