In Yakutsk the President held a meeting on the Republic's social and economic development problems. Having pointed out certain successes in the region's development, the head of state drew attention to a number of economic problems: the weak status of small and medium-sized business, problems in the transportation system, the lack of direct long-term investments, and the lack of diversification in the economy which is focused on the extraction of raw materials.
The head of state emphasized that Yakutia can only improve the situation in the economic and social spheres by changing the business climate through installing effective market-based measures and modern administrative structures.
The President drew attention to developing the oil and gas industries and strengthening the Republic's economic potential by developing its transport system and agricultural industry.
After the meeting Vladimir Putin went to a concert in the State Theatre for Opera and Ballet in the Sakha Republic (Yakutia) and visited the National Art Gallery.
In the evening Vladimir Putin participated in the Christmas service at the Preobrazhenskii Cathedral in Yakutsk. Orthodox Christians celebrate the birth of Christ on the night of January 6 (according to the Julian calendar).