The President thanked the head of the Cabinet and State Duma deputies for drafting and passing a law which earmarked additional funds for fighting terrorism in 2003. The head of state told the Finance Ministry that the decision should not lead to a budget deficit and systematic failures in paying social allowances.
Mr Putin said Prime Minister Mikhail Kasyanov was going to Armenia to sign a number of economic documents, including the transfer of a part of the stakes in Armenian companies to the Russian party as part of the debt repayment to Russia.
Minister of Internal Affairs Boris Gryzlov reported on the situation in Moscow and other cities, as well as the implementation of measures that were set out a week earlier in the wake of the hostage crisis at the Dubrovka Theater.