OREANDA-NEWS.  January 27, 2012. Vladimir Putin: Good afternoon. I am glad to be with you, and it is good that we are meeting at the Piskaryovskoye Cemetery. It is a sacred place for all residents of Leningrad (now St Petersburg), not only for those who lived here during the war but also all those who live here today. I told my colleagues that yesterday I talked with a man who had moved to St Petersburg only recently. He told me: “I know that you are going to the Piskaryovskoye Cemetery. Thank you for doing this, it is very important to us.” I was pleased that even those who have no direct family ties with the city still feel part of Leningrad, part of St Petersburg, and honour the memory of the war and the heroism of the city's residents.

I also have… I don’t even know where my elder brother, whom I have never seen, is buried. My parents told me about him. I believe it was in 1942, when children were taken from their families to save them, that he was taken from my mother and he.… Unfortunately, he caught diphtheria and died. We were told that he died but not where he was buried, so it is possible that he is buried in this cemetery.

In general, everyone who lived through that difficult time, nearly all of them… I don’t think there is a family that did not lose someone. And I believe that it is very important to remember those difficult times, those years of heroism, to remember all of you and to feel grateful to you for everything you did for the country during that period. I think that today we can also talk about history and modern times. I don’t think I should make long speeches. Instead, I’d like to listen to you and we can talk freely about the issues you worry about and those that interest you. They can be about the past, our history, as well as the present and the future.

Who would like to speak first?

Boris Belyavsky (Hero of the Soviet Union, fought on the Leningrad Front during the Great Patriotic War, honorary chairman of the St Petersburg public Council of Heroes of the Soviet Union and the Russian Federation and Full Cavaliers of the Order of Glory): Let me…

Vladimir Putin: Of course, Mr Belyavsky, but first let’s sit down, shall we? Otherwise I will have to stand up all the time. Please.

Boris Belyavsky: Let me introduce myself properly, since there are journalists in the room. I was a senior sergeant during the war and all of my other titles refer to the post-war period. Today Vladimir Moroz (Full Cavalier of the Order of Glory) and I represent the Leningrad public Council of Heroes of the Soviet Union and the Russian Federation and Full Cavaliers of the Order of Glory. (Makes a pun with the name, Moroz, which means frost in Russian, saying that there is frost outside and inside, but the one inside is a good frost.) What would I like to tell you? Personally, I am a happy man for one simple reason: as a serviceman of the 19th Guards Brigade of the Katyusha Multiple Rocket Launchers, I fought at Rzhev, Stalingrad, the Kursk Bulge, on the Dnieper and Right-bank Ukraine. Our brigade arrived up here at the Leningrad Front at the close of the Battle of Leningrad. The siege had been lifted but the Finnish troops were stationed 32 km away from the Finland Station and up to the River Sestra. As you may know, the plan was to withdraw Finland from the war at that point. I had a chance to take part in those battles, and it was my first visit to St Petersburg after the siege on May 16, 1944. And then, it so happened that I worked for a long time at the Military Artillery Academy at the close of my military career.

Now I would like to say a few words about our Council of Heroes of the Soviet Union. First of all, there are only 16 living Heroes of the Soviet Union and the Russian Federation and Full Cavaliers of the Order of Glory in our city and region. In 1991, there were over 250. But time is implacable. Since many of its members are no longer strong enough to contribute more to patriotic education, the Council of Heroes mainly focuses on publishing the memoirs of war veterans or stories about the heroic defenders of Leningrad.

A few years ago a book was published about all the Heroes of the Soviet Union who fought on the Leningrad Front. A second volume is being prepared, about the Heroes of the Volkhov Front and the Baltic Fleet. This, in brief, is what the council is doing.

Personally, I consider myself a lucky man because, after going all the way with my rocket brigade, nearly three years of fighting on the front, I am still here to meet with you. I want to emphasize that we are making every effort to memorialise the Great Patriotic War and commemorate the people who fought in that war. The only thing I must complain about… Unfortunately, our media cover this subject very sparsely, giving it less and less attention from one anniversary to the next.

There is something else about the media and especially television. I’m not sure the other veterans will support me, but I will just express my personal opinion. I am sick and tired of seeing the same faces every time I switch on my TV: the same actors and hosts, over and over again. When I see them, I immediately switch to the Planet Channel, that’s what I do. Who have the main channels been showing, lately? Alla Pugachyova and Maxim Galkin. Filipp Kirkorov and Ksenia Sobchak. Maybe there are people who want to see them all the time, but we don’t. What I mean is, when you meet with the media, and TV executives, could you please speak to them about this.

We have some specific questions Mr Putin.

Vladimir Putin: Go ahead please, Mr Belyavsky.

Boris Belyavsky: Here is my question: since Russia is joining the World Trade Organisation...

Vladimir Putin: Whoa! That’s quite unexpected.

Boris Belyavsky: What are the actual plans to ensure the nation's food security? We are worried about this for one simple reason: we remember the war, when our parents, including women, worked hard at collective farms to supply food to the army. We remember the land lease, but we don’t want to go back to those times. What I mean is, we don’t want to become recipients of food aid again. This is my first question for you.

My second question is about the Union state of Russia and Belarus. Is there any chance that war veterans will see this project materialise in our lifetime? Belarus is an important strategic ally for Russia, so we are very concerned about this.

It’s great that the government, including you, has found a way to raise salaries for active military officers and pensions for former service personnel. I know from my conversations with veterans and other servicemen that almost all of them got paid for two months in December. However, everyone is wondering what will happen to salaries after the March elections. I have one more question in this regard. As a result of numerous reforms military medicine has found itself in a predicament, almost no military doctors were left, in particular, at our military medical establishments in St Petersburg. Young graduates of medical schools don’t go off to work at military medical centres, because entry-level salaries there can be as low as 9,000 roubles. This is not the way it should be. Perhaps the salaries of medical and civilian personnel employed by the Defence Ministry should be reviewed. Those are my questions. I have another request on behalf of a group of Heroes of the Soviet Union. This is a specific issue concerning the status of the Mikhailovsky Military Artillery Academy. It's a fairly simple issue, but it still needs to be resolved. That’s all I have to say.

Vladimir Putin: Mr Belyavsky, you have raised quite a few issues. Frankly, almost all of them are unexpected to me. As usual, I did my homework before today’s meeting, and I have a general idea of the problems that veterans typically raise. The fact that you began with the WTO really came as a surprise. However, I’m pleased to hear it, because that tells me that the veterans are concerned about our current issues and think about them.

Boris Belyavsky: Yes, we are concerned.

Vladimir Putin: Yes, I understand. This is truly great and comforting to know. What can I say to you about the WTO? You are absolutely right when you say that we should think about the industries that may face stiff competition from foreign producers. Clearly among these industries is agriculture, which will be confronted with strong competition. Here's what I have to say about this. First, we are all aware of how agricultural issues were dealt with in the Soviet times, especially during the waning years of the Soviet Union. Unfortunately, this is how things were. You are aware of my stance with regard to the collapse of the Soviet Union. I can reiterate it now for you, and I’m sure that you’ll agree: I believe that the demise of the Soviet Union was a tragedy for the nation, for the Russian and other peoples of the USSR. However, this is history, and we should be looking to the future now.

As for agriculture, it was functional: huge amounts of money were spent on agriculture, but it was inefficient. This is a fact, because there were food shortages, and there was not enough domestic produce, even in large cities. There wasn’t enough meat, dairy or any other products for that matter. Everything was in short supply or even rationed. On the face of it, Russia is a major grain producer, having exported grain before the 1917 Revolution. Things turned around during Soviet times, and we began buying grain from abroad. Even our port facilities were designed for receiving cargo rather than shipping. I’m pleased to tell you that today Russia is the world’s third largest grain exporter. We produce enough to cover our own needs and sell abroad. Russia has a significant export potential of tens of millions of metric tonnes. There was a period of recession when we had to limit our exports and even shut them down completely when there was a drought for two consecutive years. However, we managed to restore our export capabilities in full this year. According to different estimates, our growth in agricultural output exceeds 40%.

There are branches in which we have made a huge leap forward and even set a record among farming industries of the leading countries, such as the poultry industry. We have never had such high volumes of domestic poultry production. We have almost covered in full Russia’s poultry requirements. The production of pork has grown many times over. Things are slightly more complicated with beef, but pork and beef are all red meat anyway. Pork producers are really concerned about Russia’s accession to the WTO, because Russia will have to cut import duties once it becomes a member. These duties protect domestic producers, but as soon as we begin receiving large quantities of cheaper pork on the domestic market, Russian producers may find themselves at a disadvantage. In the first place, this will benefit the consumers, above all those who live in large cities, because there will be more meat, including pork, at reasonable prices.