In his annual address to the nation, Putin confidently predicted that Russia will defeat rebels in breakaway Chechnya, where more than 75 people died this week in two separate suicide bombings. Putin said Russian forces "would finish the job" of ending the war, a sign the Kremlin intended to continue military operations.
"We face serious threats," Putin told lawmakers gathered in the marble room in the Kremlin, which was once used for high-level meetings of the Soviet Communist Party.
Under his leadership, Putin said Russia had avoided disintegrating and that its strategic goal is to become a powerful nation.
"Russia can exist within its borders only if it is a great power," he said.
In a stern, forceful voice, Putin listed the country's demographic slide, poverty, the spread of weapons of mass destruction and international terrorism as among the problems Russia must confront.
He said Russia's bloated bureaucracy must be cut. On political reform, he said forming a government based on a parliamentary majority should be considered.
Putin's speech was widely seen as the kickoff event in his campaign to win re-election as president next year. Although his popularity is high and a second term is not in doubt, Putin's address sounded like a campaign speech.
It didn't impress lawmakers.
"There were no serious ideas in this speech ... We left disappointed," Irina Khakamada, vice speaker of the lower house of parliament, the Duma, and a leading liberal lawmaker, said on Ekho Moskvy radio.
Communist leader Gennady Zyuganov said that "Not a single question was answered in the economic part," of the speech.
But in a country that has undergone political turmoil and constant change for 15 years, Putin warned against reform for reform's sake. "There cannot be a permanent revolution," he said.
Putin criticized the government for its slackness in achieving economic gains. "The tempo of economic growth is slowing," he said. He said the country's GDP should be doubled over the next 10 years and said the ruble should become fully convertible.
The Russian leader said Russia's strategy should be to ensure that Russia can become a "truly strong, economically progressive and influential" country.
Putin devoted little time to international affairs.
Putin praised the success of the anti-terrorist coalition formed after Sept. 11, but he repeated that the United Nations remains "the most important" mechanism for regulating international conflict.
Turning to military reform, Putin noted that Russia was developing a new generation of strategic weapons. He provided no details, but the announcement was met with applause.
According to Russian media and military analysts, there were no visible development programs for new strategic weapons in the 1990s except for a new type of strategic missile being developed for the navy and the modernization of Soviet-built ballistic missiles intended to extend their lifetime.
Pavel Felgenhauer, an independent military analyst, said that Putin's statement could refer to new types of nuclear warheads that are believed to be under development.
"The president apparently meant a new generation of nuclear warheads, including low-yield ones similar to those designed by the Americans," Felgenhauer said in a telephone interview. Development of those weapons began long ago, Felgenhauer said, and their "deployment is quite realistic."
Putin, who is seeking to reform Russia's military by gradually introducing an all-volunteer army, also proposed reducing military service to one year from two by 2008. Russia has tremendous problems meeting its draft quotas because of often horrific conditions in the military.
Turning to Chechnya, Putin said progress had been achieved in reaching a political settlement in the republic. A referendum on a new constitution approved this spring must now be complemented by presidential and parliamentary elections. On Thursday, Putin offered a partial amnesty to rebels who agreed to put down their weapons. In his speech he said steps must be taken to return such people to a normal life. The Associated Press Putin calls for economic growth, military reform
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