Prime Minister Vladimir Putin fielded a...
monopoly on alcohol production and sale would not solve all problems facing the sector- Russia"s super-rich should give up their ostentatious spending habits and use their wealth to benefit their country
- The Russian government will spend 250 billion rubles ($8.6 billion) to cut mortgage rates to 10%-11% in 2010
- The Russian government is considering giving more authority to the industrial safety regulator, Rostekhnadzor, in efforts to prevent accidents similar to the August 17 disaster at a Siberian hydropower plant that killed 75 people
Foreign affairs:
- He does not back Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko"s presidential bid
- A cut in energy prices for Belarus should coincide with Minsk"s integration into the Union state with Russia
- Wishing ill to other countries, including the U.S., is pointless
Environmental issues:
- Putin pledged to help the conservation of endangered polar bears