Interfax: May 2012 decrees set targets for all Russian executive power institutions – President Putin

MOSCOW. Dec 5 (Interfax) – Russian President Vladimir Putin has said he is convinced that the targets set by his decrees issued in May 2012 can still be achieved despite today’s recession and a slow pace of economic growth.

“I am certain that we can and should fulfill them,” Putin said at the Russian Popular Front’s conference.

“These decrees are not just some papers that were prepared during the election campaign. Rather, these measures are long overdue. It is a document that sets benchmarks and tasks for all the institutions of the executive branch of power,” the president said.

“We know that the goals set there deal with almost all areas. They are very serious. And it will be quite difficult to achieve them even having a rapidly developing economy and high economic growth,” Putin said.

“Today we have encountered a situation where our economy is largely reflecting the events that have happened in the world economy for the past few years,” the president said.

“What is happening in the European [economy] harms our economy most of all because countries of the European Union account for over 50% of our foreign trade. That is why the recession that has continued there for the past few years has affected us to a certain extent,” Putin said.