Mr Putin called on the Government to step up contacts with Parliament members to draft and discuss priority bills since the State Duma’s term was expiring. Many essential bills should be passed before the break—in particular, amendments to the Land Code, and the bills on restoring the Government’s right to regulate energy export duties and on bank deposit insurance.
Mr Putin said that he hoped the State Duma would urgently approve the federal budget for 2004, the third, and final, reading of which was scheduled for November 21.
On the topic of international affairs, the President told the Government that the Foreign Ministry officially introduced the Russian plan for Transdnestr settlement on his instruction the day before.
The plan appeared after many consultations with the Moldovan and the Transdnestr leadership and therefore took both parties' opinions of the future national Constitution into consideration as much as possible, the President said.
Mr Putin stressed that the political settlement of the Transdnestr conflict would remove the last obstacles to Russia’s compliance with its obligations on the removal of its arms and military equipment from the region.
Mr Putin ordered the Foreign Ministry to consult with the OSCE and Ukraine on supporting the plan with an emphasis on agreements between the parties directly involved, rather than on third party interests.