Russian agriculture to get extra 153 bln rubles in soft loans - Putin

MOSCOW. April 5 (Interfax) - Russian President Vladimir Putin backed a government proposal to allocate a further 153 billion rubles from the budget for preferential loans to agriculture.

"It is of course important to ensure the stable operation of agricultural enterprises this year. And in this regard, I support the government's proposal to allocate additionally at least 153 billion rubles from the federal budget, primarily for preferential short-term and investment loans for the sector," he said at a meeting devoted to the sector's issues.

It is important to lower imports in domestic agriculture, Putin said. "One main area is seed farming, the development and promotion of the achievements of Russian selective breeding programs, including in the sphere of animal husbandry and poultry farming. We'll allot no less than an additional 5 billion rubles this year to support seed production and breeding centers," he said.

Putin also called for substantially increasing domestic production of agricultural equipment and parts for fishing boats. "This is a very important area. Moreover, this needs to be done without delay, quickly, at a fast pace. We'll discuss approaches to resolving this issue shortly," he said.

"I ask the government to codify proposals and provide for the necessary amount of financing for the corresponding programs," Putin said.