Potential is needed for further development of Kuril Islands - Putin
YUZHNO-SAKHALINSK. July 16 (Interfax) - Russian President Vladimir Putin has proposed discussing an initiative to prolong the development program for the Kuril Islands.
Speaking at a session on Sakhalin's socioeconomic development, Putin said that this idea has "its strong and weak sides".
"It has only one minus - there is not enough money," the president said.
The availability of reliable transportation links is crucial to the Kuril Islands, he said.
An overhaul of the region's transport infrastructure is envisioned in the aforementioned federal program, which should be prolonged and expanded, the president said.
Apart from building new infrastructure facilities, nurseries, schools and hospitals, "there is a need to create the potential for the further development of this territory," Putin said.
The demographic situation in the Kuril Islands and the region as a whole remains "rather complicated," he said.
