APEC summit important for Russia as jab in the arm for Far East.

RUSSKY ISLAND, June 30 (Itar-Tass) - The APEC summit in Vladivostok is
important for Russia not as it is, but as a jab in the arm for improving
quality of life in all Far East, said President Dmitry Medvedev.
"This summit is important, of course, for our country in the
diplomatic respect, as recognition of Russia as a substantial element of
Asian Pacific economic cooperation. The summit will last for a couple of
days, but what we are creating, will stand, I hope, for decades and
centuries," Medvedev said at a meeting on preparing for the summit, which
he held on Russky Island.
The president called attention to the fact that all the projects are
being built virtually from scratch. "As a result of the summit, we should
create a new Vladivostok, convenient for citizens and the entire Primorye
Territory. To my mind, the task of staging the summit at a high quality
level is important, but not the main," the head of state emphasised.
He said that funds, appropriated by the state and investors for this
construction, top 600 billion roubles, including from the federal budget -
205 billion roubles, from the regional - 33 billion and from the
Vladivostok budget - 44 million.
"This is the only construction development in our country over the
past few years where planned outlays have not topped actual ones. As for
other major projects, you know their names: higher outlays needed;
developers approach the country's leadership and the government leadership
with proposals to give more and more money," the president complained,
noting that this is not the case with projects for the APEC summit.
"This is not a bad sign, and I hope that we shall round off
approximately at this level," he underlined, noting that 96 projects had
been planned to build.
The president stressed that the volume of housing under construction
in Vladivostok would amount to nearly one million square metres - "this is
ten percent of the city". "The push to be given by the summit, should be
converted later into Vladivostok's investment appeal, into additional
jobs, construction of new housing and social facilities," he underlined.
Speaking of the choice of Russky Island as a place for holding the
summit, the president emphasised that on picking up this place, the
government had to make a difficult choice. "That was a difficult task from
the start. All understand what was this territory like. It did not meet a
single requirement, needed for such projects. There was nothing here," the
president noted.
Medvedev also noted that apart from erecting the summit projects on
Russky Island, the task is "to think of the island's future with its
unique nature". "This nature should not disappear as a result of holding
the summit and the ongoing construction development.
On the contrary, possibilities to be created by additional
infrastructure, should be used for good of the island's development and
consequently for all Vladivostok," the president stressed.