MOSCOW, October 6 (Itar-Tass) —— The Russians assess positively the policy of Russian President Vladimir Putin, but he will face new challenges within next six years, the political scientists said at the round-table meeting titled “Modern Putin. Challenges and expectations of new presidency” at the Civil Society Development Foundation on Friday.
Chairman of the board of the Civil Society Development Foundation Konstantin Kostin noted that the Russian leader enjoys a larger support of the society than the leaders of the foreign countries in their countries. He cited the data that 72% of respondents assess positively the work of Putin at the post of the Russian president (according to the FOM survey results), while 43% of US citizens estimate positively the work of US President Barack Obama.
The sociologists noted that during his current presidential term people primarily expect a higher wellbeing from Putin. The struggle against corruption, provision of free health care services, qualitative education, an upsurge of the production industries and agriculture are following. “All other demands: development of democracy and several other demands got much fewer votes,” VTSIOM Director General Valery Fedorov noted.
At a forthcoming period of Putin’s presidency “Russia is interested in the rapprochement with the West, but the country is not ready to sacrifice something for this,” Executive Director of the Russkiy Mir Foundation Vyacheslav Nikonov said. “Russia does not have any complexes that the country is not a member of the Western alliances,” he noted. According to him, Putin’s comeback in the Kremlin will change the emphases in the relations with the West, particularly “a larger emphasis on European policy and a smaller emphasis on the US policy.” During his third term of presidency the Russian president will pursue a policy for Russian stronger positions in the Asia-Pacific Region and the cooperation with the BRICS states.
Speaking on the tasks, which the Russian president should resolve, Director of the Institute of Social Planning and Editor-in-Chief of the magazine Expert Valery Fadeyev noted the provision of qualitative and affordable education and medicine, the settlement to the problems of the ‘archaic’ industries and the financial system. “The financial system does not meet the needs of the country – the credits are expensive and hardly affordable,” he noted.
Head of the chair of general political science Leonid Polyakov believes that Putin will have “to fight for progressive qualified managers at all levels” and to give up “the principle of close associates, which was justified at some stage.” The political scientist believes that the Russian president should “find new ways to unite around him “Putin’s majority”, which will be differentiated thanks to a larger number of parties.”
During his current term of presidency Putin should also “substantiate a response to the question: why Russia is the federation.” Russia should realize that the federative system of the country, “the independence of the regions is not the legacy of the Bolsheviks, but the resource for development.”