As he was speaking to university professors, Mr Putin said that it was the Government’s duty to promote fundamental research and sciences that had a bearing on national defence. University research had not received due attention from the state and so receded into the margin, he said.
Mr Putin expressed a view that the burgeoning Russian small and medium business can offer financial support for higher education.
He approved the idea put forward by university professors to create an R&D database and pointed out the inadequacy of intellectual property protection in Russia.