MOSCOW, January 20. /TASS/. One of the constitutional amendments that Russian President Vladimir Putin submitted to the State Duma (the lower house of parliament) on Monday authorizes the country’s president to form the State Council.

"In order to ensure effective coordination and cooperation between Russia’s state bodies, outline the key principles of foreign and domestic policies and the priorities of the country’s social and economic development, the Russian president is supposed to form the State Council of the Russian Federation," says an explanatory note published in the State Duma database.

According to the document, Article 83.4 of the Russian Constitution will have to be amended in this regard.

While delivering his State of the Nation Address to the Federal Assembly on January 15, Putin suggested strengthening the role of the State Council and regional governors. He pointed out that the State Council, which involved the heads of all Russian regions, was revived in 2000 and "has proved its efficiency, while its working groups provide an expert, comprehensive and quality analysis of issues that are pressing for the country and its people." The head of state emphasized that "it is reasonable to enshrine the role and status of the State Council in the Russian Constitution."

On September 1, 2000, Putin signed a decree creating the State Council and determined its goals. The State Council was made up of incumbent heads of Russia’s regions. In 2007, the president obtained the right to include former governors in the council and in 2012, the speakers of the Federation Council and the State Duma, the presidential envoys to Russia’s federal districts and the heads of parliamentary factions joined the State Council.