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Putin pledges to increase spending on science to over 2% of GDP

At the same time, he admitted that these funds are still inferior to funds spent on science in leading countries
Photo ITAR-TASS
Photo ITAR-TASS

MOSCOW, May 22 (Itar-Tass) — Russian President Vladimir Putin has set a task of increasing spending on science to 2.5 percent of the GDP, like in the United States.

“We see it as our task to increase by 2015 public spending on scientific research and development, including through private investments, to about 1.8 percent of the GDP,” Putin said at a general meeting of the Russian Academy of Sciences on Tuesday.

At the same time, he admitted that these funds are still inferior to funds spent on science in leading countries, such as the United States which spends 2.5 percent of the GDP on science.

“We will be taking effort to reach this level and will be doing it steadily, gradually, balancing our steps with our possibilities, but we are committed to move toward it,” he pledged.