Russian President Dmitry Medvedev addressed the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation on Tuesday. Unlike last year's speech, that could be summed up in a simple slogan 'Russia, go ahead!', the new one was prepared in an atmosphere of absolute secrecy. Those tiny informational leaks that penetrated the media were most likely planned by the Kremlin press-service to create a positive attitude to the address in advance.
Those who expected sensational statements based their opinion on the forecasts of some experts, who speculated that the president was going to announce his intention to create a new political party headed by himself. This interesting rumour created a certain intrigue, but all in all the major part of the Russian political elite expected a more conventional presidential 'monologue', covering the issue of ongoing modernization - the Kremlin brand for this year.
As it turns out, the prognosis of a 'conventional address' was more accurate. The president devoted a whole hour of his speech to Russia's urgent social problems. And this seems to be logical, as the election cycle of 2011-2012 implies that the political elites must turn their attention to issues concerning the electorate: small business, corruption, orphans, ecology, etc.
The most important statement of this part of the presidential address was when he recognized the scale of corrupt activities in state purchases. Medvedev estimates it at 3 trillion rubles. Moreover, Medvedev said that governmental bodies should not be allowed to possess press, plants and steamboats, i.e. any property that is not necessary for exercising their duties should be privatized. He also voiced a long-expected proposal: to introduce bureaucrats' liability for breaking the terms of rendering state services. The president didn't forget about his favourite subject - modernization. This time he stressed the aspect of the competitive abilities of Russian products and the formation of a demand for innovations. He quoted the 'Skolkovo' project as an example of Russia's progress in the innovative economy field.
As for the political aspects of the address, they didn't meet the high expectations of the experts. The most notable statement was that, according to Medvedev, if NATO and Russia don't manage to sign the new START treaty in 10 years, the world will be facing a new round of the arms race. All in all, this year's speech is a logical continuation of Medvedev's article 'Russia, go ahead!', and that's good news for those who think that a systematic approach will boost the efficiency of innovations.
Alexey Vlasov., Exclusively for VK
