MOSCOW, January 23. /TASS/. Russian President Vladimir Putin hopes that Donbass and Novorossiya will join the all-Russia space as soon as possible. At the same time, he prioritized the solution of security issues.
"Their entry into the common Russian space, I hope, will happen very soon. We will strive to make it happen as quickly as possible, along with settling the security issue, of course," Putin said at a meeting with participants in and winners of nation-wide family contests.
Putin noted that the elections and referendums in the LPR, DPR, Kherson and Zaporozhye regions showed that historical ties with Russia had not been lost. Speaking about the programs for the reconstruction of these regions, Putin promised that it would continue.
"We will certainly continue these programs," he said. "We have major programs for restoring these regions. Your regions. Over a trillion rubles, I think 1 trillion 77 billion. This is decent money," he remarked.
Putin noted that "the situation now is not the best and far from calm."
However, he drew attention to the fact that these regions were hard-working and were already starting to pay taxes to the federal budget.
"The payoff is well in sight. You have very talented and industrious people. Such labor staffs, such character, such industriousness and such gift for creative endeavor in the broadest sense of the word have taken shape over centuries in the coalmines, and in high schools, and in music schools, and so on," he concluded.