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'Siberia is so big, it’s almost more an idea than a place'
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Siberia IS the future, declares Vladimir Putin

By 0 and 0 and 0
12 December 2013

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'We have already made the decision on a rate break on profit tax and a number of other taxes for new projects in the Far East. I think it appropriate to extend this regime to all of Eastern Siberia, including Krasnoyarsk Territory and the Republic of Khakasia.' Picture: Alexey Bezrukov

The development of Siberia and the Far East should be a priority for Russia throughout the 21st century, said the President in an historic announcement in his state of the nation address. 

He promised 'five year tax holidays on income tax, extraction tax... taxes on land and property and a preferential rate of insurance premiums that is very important for highly technological products' in a bold statement of intend for the development of Russia's gateway to Asia and the Pacific.

'The resources of the state and private business have to go to development, to the achievement of strategic goals,' he told senior officials in the Grand Kremlin Palace. 'For example, like building up Siberia and the Far East. This is our national priority for the entire 21st century. The tasks that are to be resolved are unprecedented in scale, and this means our steps have to non-standard.'

Siberia IS the future, declares Vladimir Putin


Siberia IS the future, declares Vladimir Putin

'The terms for business will be competitive there, with key business centres, procedures of getting permits for construction, connection to the electric power grid and customs' clearance'. Pictures: kremlin.ru, Vesti.ru 

The president ordered prime minister Dmitry Medvedev to take under his 'personal control' an initiative clearly seen as of immense strategic importance to Russia's future. 'The terms for business will be competitive there, with key business centres, procedures of getting permits for construction, connection to the electric power grid and customs' clearance,' he said.

'We will use actively the capacities of the Development Fund of the Far East to resolve the issue of infrastructure in these territories.'

He gave officials until 1 July 2014 to set the legal procedures in motion and overcome bureaucratic hurdles. 'I ask the prime minister to put this work under his personal control,' he stressed. 

The tax perks will not include oil and gas, which are anyway seen as 'profitable', he said. 

'We have already made the decision on a rate break on profit tax and a number of other taxes for new projects in the Far East. I think it appropriate to extend this regime to all of Eastern Siberia, including Krasnoyarsk Territory and the Republic of Khakasia. Furthermore, I propose setting up a network of special territories of advanced economic development in the Far East and Eastern Siberia.'

The aim appears to be a far more diversified economy with the vibrancy and hunger for exporting of other Pacific rim competitors. The state should also relax other business-related conditions, like building-permit applications and customs procedures, to encourage development and bring the regions to a level competitive with rivals in the Asia-Pacific area.

Comments (4)

The only thing standing in the way are leaders who place power above the nation and people. You change a country for the worst with money and power, you change a country for the best by changing their hearts. Replace atheism planted by communists to a belief in a God of love for mankind. "brotherly love" and a community of prosperity will develop.
Abraham Dios, America
27/01/2014 19:46
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I would add: Sibeira IS the present too.
Enrique, Spain
21/12/2013 19:04
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I agree completely with the writer above.
Siberia could benefit the whole region.
Seoul Joe, Seoul, Korea
19/12/2013 16:44
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Now there is a leader who has done his homework ,a leader with a rare long term vision of what Russia needs/must do if it is to survive in today's very competitive modern world.
When you have all these "natural resources"-----those not only under the ground ,but just as important those above the ground. The unique Siberian forests ,its snow capped mountains ,its pristine lakes,------- a tourist boom waiting to explode.
Russia holds all the aces in the pack ,it now has to use that advantage to make the cards fall the right way .
It's not even a gamble, it's a wager on a certainty ,and that certainty is Siberia , Patrick

Patrick Travers, Perth Australia
13/12/2013 21:31
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