Decision on federal officials' resettlement to "new" Moscow due in Q1 2013 - Putin
MOSCOW. Dec 20 (Interfax) - A final decision concerning the resettlement of federal officials to the "new" Moscow will be made early next year with due account of the required investment, President Vladimir Putin told a Thursday press conference.
"We must be realistic and evaluate [resettlement] expenditures," he said.
"A final decision can be made after we have done that. The Economic Development Ministry, the Federal Agency for State Property Management, the Communications and Mass Media Ministry and specialized agencies, among them the Federal Protective Service, are working on that," he said.
"Hopefully, we will have the necessary information to make a final decision in the first quarter of next year," Putin said.
Security must be provided in resettling the authorities, Putin said. "Every country does that, and Russia is not an exception. This implies expenditures from the federal budget," he said.
"Besides, money will be spent on supporting the authorities' activity, such as garages, drivers, healthcare and so on. All these facilities are now in Moscow. If we move officials to the "new" Moscow and the support staff remains in the old city, traffic will still be tense in the city center," he said.
Putin said he held a conference on resettlement to the new administrative center a short time ago. "Relevant ministries and departments were ordered to make estimates. This is not idle talk," he remarked.
It is necessary to evaluate the cost of the new infrastructure, such as roads, power lines and communication lines, including governmental that cost a lot, he said.