MOSCOW, July 07. /ITAR-TASS/. The Russian government has approved financing for 46 federal target programs (FTPs) for 2015 and put another five FTPs, including one on development of Crimea, a former Ukrainian region that recently joined Russia, on a waiting list, the cabinet of ministers reported on its website on Monday.
The decision was made following a government meeting on July 3, where a draft federal budget for the next three years was taken as a basis, the cabinet said. In line with the government resolution, 46 FTPs will be implemented in 2015, 33 FTPs in 2016 and 27 in 2017.
Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev said at the government meeting that overall financing for the 46 FTPs next year will exceed 1 trillion rubles ($29 billion).
Besides, another five targeted programs worked out in line with instructions by the Russian president were put on a waiting list, as budget allocations have not been stipulated for them yet.
The five targeted programs include “The National System of Chemical and Biological Safety of the Russian Federation for 2015-2020”, “Fire Safety in the Russian Federation until 2017” and “Elimination of Cumulative Environmental Damage” for 2015-2026.
They also include “Elimination of the Consequences of Chemical Weapons Storage and Destruction Facilities’ Activity in the Russian Federation” for 2015-2022 as well as “The Social and Economic Development of the Republic of Crimea and the federal city of Sevastopol until 2020.”
After the government meeting, Medvedev instructed the Economic Development Ministry to conduct work to improve the mechanism of planning and financing of investment-related expenditures, paying special heed to timely drafting of design and estimate documentation.
The Republic of Crimea and Sevastopol, a city with a special status on the Crimean Peninsula, where most residents are Russians, refused to recognize the legitimacy of authorities brought to power amid riots during a coup in Ukraine in February.
Crimea and Sevastopol adopted declarations of independence on March 11. They held a referendum on March 16, in which 96.77% of Crimeans and 95.6% of Sevastopol voters chose to secede from Ukraine and join the Russian Federation. Russian President Vladimir Putin signed the reunification deals March 18.
Work to integrate the Crimean Peninsula into Russia’s economic, financial, credit, legal, state power, military conscription and infrastructure systems is actively underway now that Crimea has become part of Russia.
In the Soviet Union, Crimea used to be part of Russia until 1954, when Nikita Khrushchev, the first secretary of the USSR’s Communist Party, transferred it to Ukraine's jurisdiction as a gift.