Additional funds from the 2003 budget will be allocated to finance the International Space Station, ensure that wages in the regions are paid on time, pay off debts to the military-industrial complex and the agriculture sector and finance several social programmes, including a programme to equip schools with computers and connect them to the Internet.
All budget revenue in the 2004 budget earned from oil prices of more than $20 a barrel will go into a stabilization fund that will form a reserve from which to pay debts, reduce interest payments and resolve certain social problems.
According to Mr Kudrin, the stabilisation fund should come to more than 83 billion roubles by the end of 2004. This reserve will enable Russia to meet all its domestic and foreign commitments, above all its social commitments, over the next three years.