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Putin to make working trip to Crimea to hold State Council meeting on tourism development

Meanwhile, Russian Minister of Culture Vladimir Medinsky did not rule out that the presidium of the State Council would discuss the issue of simplifying visa issuance procedures for transit tourists

MOSCOW, August 17. /TASS/. Russian President Vladimir Putin will make a working trip to Crimea on Monday to chair a meeting of the presidium of the Russian State Council in Yalta dedicated to the development of the tourism sector, the Kremlin press service said.

"Key topics for discussion will include measures to promote the development of domestic tourism as an indicator of socio-economic development of Russian regions, Crimea in particular," the press service said.

Apart from that, Putin’s plans include an informal meeting with representatives of Crimea’s ethnic public associations.

Putin has twice visited Crimea after its reunification with Russia in March 2014. In August 2014, the Russian president held a meeting of the Russian Security Council in Sevastopol and met with members of the Russian State Duma lower parliament house in Yalta. On May 9, 2014, he attended the VE-Day navy and air parade in Sevastopol.

At a government meeting in Simferopol in July that was dedicated to the preparations for the session of the presidium of the Russian State Council, Putin’s aide Igor Levitin said demand for foreign trips in Russia had decreased in 2014 whereas demand for domestic trips had increased by 30% "Participants in the meeting outlined key problems that are to be solved to promote the development of the tourism sector. These problems are insufficient development of infrastructure, poor quality of services, excessive domestic transport tariffs and visa formalities for foreign tourists, etc.," the Kremlin website said.

Meanwhile, Russian Minister of Culture Vladimir Medinsky did not rule out that the presidium of the State Council would discuss the issue of simplifying visa issuance procedures for transit tourists. He said the ministry was in favour of introducing 72-hour visa free regime for transit passengers. "The ministry supports this idea and so does the Federal Agency for Tourism," Medinsky said last Thursday, noting that this way inbound tourism would be stimulated. "Any kind of easing visa demands increases tourist flow.".