MOSCOW, June 7 (Itar-Tass) - Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday met more than 40 Russian officers and generals who have been appointed to top army posts and promoted to top military ranks.
The meeting took place at the St. George Hall of the Grand Kremlin Palace.
Putin called on them to give a rebuff to extremists and continue fighting against underground terrorist groups in Northern Caucasus.
"It’s necessary to give a tough rebuff to extremists who use radical nationalistic and separatist slogans, try to split our society and weaken the country’s unity,” the president emphasized.
"The situation in the Northern Caucasus should be under special control. We should pursue our line against corruption, crime and underground terrorist groups firmly and consistently. This is the guarantee for improving the situation and enlisting broad public support for our actions,” the Russian president went on to say.
Putin noted that anti-terror activities continued to be one of the main priorities for the Federal Security Service, which, he believes, should use modern tactics and increase coordination of activities of anti-terror forces.
"We see that there have been some positive achievements, which are extremely needful for the country and its people,” Putin emphasized.
The president also spoke about counter surveillance. “As we see, the recent events have shown us that counter surveillance has not lost its significance and has become even more relevant,” the Russian head of state said.