The meeting discussed targets for 2002 and current issues relating to energy and social affairs.
Mr Putin said every Ministry, the Cabinet as a whole and the President must have clear and understandable objectives for 2002. He stressed that the country must improve on last year’s results and do more in the new year.
The President called the attention of Cabinet members to the fact that some of the laws passed last year had already come into effect. One of the new laws introduced a tax payable on shipment of goods. The President said he was not sure that all regions and their leaders were prepared to accept this innovation. So the task of the Cabinet, he said, was to see to it that tax collection suffered no shortfalls. The President also drew the attention of participants to problems connected with the winter peak of energy consumption.