VLADIVOSTOK, September 12. /TASS/. The average life expectancy in Russia now stands at 74 years, Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Tuesday.

"What should we focus on here? We should focus on life expectancy. It is on the rise here. The average life expectancy stood at 71 years in 2001 and today it stands at 73.6 years. There was a period, I believe it was in July of this year, when it slightly exceeded 74 years in a year-on-year rate," Putin said speaking at the plenary session of the 2023 Eastern Economic Forum (EEF).

Commenting on the country's demographic problems, Putin pointed to two considerable declines in the birth rate, which had a ripple effect on present-day figures, these being in 1943-1944 and in the early 1990s.

"It was in the early 1990s, when [then-Deputy Premier] Anatoly Chubais and his team held governmental seats," Putin continued. "They did a lot in taking steps to promptly put Russia’s economy on the market track."

"It is hard to say now who could have done better or in what way. It’s always easy to criticize. But in any case, they resorted to harsh measures," the Russian president noted.

"Besides other things, it all led to the collapse of the social system, people’s impoverishment and a sharp decline in the birth rate, just like it was in the times of the Great Patriotic War," Putin said, adding that Russia is currently in the midst of another demographic collapse.

The Eastern Economic Forum (EEF) is taking place in Vladivostok on September 10-13. The slogan for this year’s forum is: On the Path to Partnership, Peace and Prosperity. The Roscongress Foundation is the event organizer. TASS is the EEF’s general information partner.