Conversation with Vladimir Putin

OREANDA-NEWS. December 15, 2011. Transcript of the live question and answer session, A Conversation with Vladimir Putin: Continued

Maria Sittel: Good afternoon, I am Maria Sittel. We are live on air with the special programme A Conversation with Vladimir Putin: Continued. Today’s programme is rather special. This is the tenth time we are broadcasting this session.

Ernest Mackevicius: It is barely 15 days to New Year’s Eve but it does not feel like the political year is over. On the contrary, the past two weeks have been truly event-packed. State Duma elections were held on December 4 and the presidential campaign has begun. People across Russia are now wondering what direction the country will move in.

I am Ernest Mackevicius. My colleagues, Tatiana Remezova, Ivan Kudryavtsev, Maria Kitayeva, Dmitry Shchugorev and Maria Morgun are working alongside Maria Sittel to bring this programme to you.

Maria Sittel: The call centre has been up and running for three days now. Tens of thousands of calls, e-mails and text messages to the session’s website have come in. For the first time ever, public opinion leaders, people Russians respect, have been involved in selecting questions and helping with preparations for this broadcast.

Maria Morgun: Taking part in our programme today we have Leonid Roshal, President of the National Medical Chamber and famous paediatrician; actress Olga Budina, founder of the charitable foundation for children Protect the Future; and Alexander Karelin, famous Russian athlete, public figure and politician.

Dmitry Shchugorev: Also in the studio here today we have politician Vladimir Vasilyev, deputy of the Fifth State Duma, lawyer Anatoly Kucherena, political analyst Andranik Migranyan and French writer and public figure Marek Halter.

Ivan Kudryavtsev: We have also invited People’s Artist Alexander Kalyagin; Archpriest Maxim Kozlov, rector of the Moscow State University Church of St. Tatiana; writer Tatyana Ustinova; chairman of the Russian Union of Filmmakers Nikita Mikhalkov; actor of stage and screen Yevgeny Mironov; actor, film director and producer Fyodor Bondarchuk; musician Igor Butman and Boris Titov, head of the Delovaya Rossiya business association.

Maria Kitayeva: General Aslambek Aslakhanov, artistic director of the Mariinsky Theatre Valery Gergiyev, lawyer Andrei Makarov, my colleague Vladimir Solovyov and writer and journalist Alexander Prokhanov are also here with us today.

Tatiana Remezova: And lastly, our honoured guests, also here today, are Academician Yevgeny Primakov, Children's Rights Commissioner Pavel Astakhov, as well as political analysts Natalya Narochnitskaya, Nikolai Zlobin and Alexander Rahr.

Ernest Mackevicius: There are many more studio guests, including representatives of dozens of organisations that have joined the Russian Popular Front, workers, business people, scientists and young people. We will get a chance to hear what everyone has to say.

So, live on air, on the Rossiya network, we now have Prime Minister Vladimir Putin.

Maria Sittel: I’d like to remind you that you can ask questions while we are on air by calling us on 8-800-200-40-40, you can also text us on 04040, and if you are online you can email us via our website at www.moskva-putinu.ru or москва-путину.рф, where you will also find this programme broadcast live online.

We will also be going live to our mobile TV broadcast teams in regions, cities and towns across Russia, including Vladivostok, the Stavropol Territory, Ufa, Sochi, Nizhny Tagil and other cities. We will be going live to them during this programme.

Ernest Mackevicius: Mr Putin, shall we begin?

Vladimir Putin: Yes, let’s begin. Good afternoon, hello, thank you for coming.

Ernest Mackevicius: I think we should start with a question about the State Duma elections, which have provoked such diverse reactions from the public

To date you have not made any comment on the events of recent days. What do you think of them, personally? Why did people who do not consider themselves your political opponents attend the Bolotnaya Square meeting? Does that mean that they are not satisfied with the way the authorities are treating them?

Vladimir Putin: The fact that people speak out, express their views on the processes underway in the economy and the social and political spheres is all absolutely normal – so long they abide by the law.

I hope that this is how it will be. The people I saw on TV, mainly young people, active, who make their case in a clear and lucid manner. This is good to see.

If this is a result of “Putin’s rule,” then that’s all to the good. I don’t see anything excessive here.

I want to state once more – the main thing is that everyone involved and all political forces stay within the constraints of the law.

Ernest Mackevicius: A question sent to our web site.

The recent State Duma elections have sparked expected sentiments of discontent, culminating in protests in Moscow, St Petersburg and other cities. People were outraged by what they perceived as fraud on the part of the authorities. Do you think the elections were honest and their results are fair?

Vladimir Putin: You know this talk of falsification, and the opposition’s dissatisfaction with the election results are nothing new, it has always been like this and always will be. This is what the opposition is for. It fights for power. And it therefore seeks out any available opportunity to approach the powers that be, seeking to squeeze the incumbents out, making accusations about them and pointing out their mistakes. This is also, overall, entirely normal.

If you are asking whether or not these elections were objective and honest, I think – and I have said this publicly – that the election results clearly reflect the lineup of powers in the country. And it is nothing extraordinary that the ruling force – United Russia – has ceded ground to an extent.

Well, we have just weathered a very difficult phase of the crisis. Look at what is happening in other countries. This has clearly had a negative impact on people. Living standards have fallen and many have lost their jobs, making the opposition’s role – recruiting the dissatisfied – much easier. And yet United Russia has retained its leading positions, which is a very good result.

As for whether the elections were honest or not, the opposition will always claim that they were dishonest, always. And this happens everywhere, in all countries. The only difference is in the form this dissatisfaction takes. This is an issue of political culture.

It is clear to me that the attacks on the elections are a secondary matter. The main goal is the upcoming presidential elections. I have a proposal that will help us to preclude problems during these elections, to minimise opportunities for levelling these allegations at us that these or any future elections are dishonest and cutting the ground out from under the feet of those who aim to de-legitimise the authorities in the country.

You know I travelled a great deal around the affected regions during last summer’s forest fires in central Russia, seeking to help people rebuild their homes. We took a number of highly unusual decisions then. No other country in the world has ever implemented such programmes. What we did is quickly rebuild homes, including thanks to the fact that I asked for web cameras to be installed at all construction sites, which worked around the clock, so that I could click a button to see what was going on at any site at any time of day, whether I was at home or in the office.

I suggest and request that the Central Election Commission install web cameras at all 90,000 plus voting stations in Russia. They should be on 24/7, so that the whole nation could watch what’s going on at each particular ballot box. That would preclude any possibility of fabrications on this account.

Ernest Mackevicius: I know that there are people in the audience who are ready to continue discussing the subject of elections.

Vladimir Putin: I would like to make another point. I believe that the opposition should be able to monitor absolutely everything that happens at voting stations. The web cameras can do this. All political forces that are represented in the parliament should also be represented at the district voting stations in accordance with the law.

I would also like to address those who are ready to vote, including for me as a presidential candidate. Please don’t think that no matter how you vote the authorities will manipulate things the way they want them to be, and you can go about your business instead of going to a voting station. No one will do anything for you. You are the ones to determine who will implement Russia’s foreign policy and represent our country on the international arena, who will guarantee internal and external security, who will address social issues and who will promote the economy. Only you and no one but you.

Ernest Mackevicius: Let’s continue with elections. I know we have people in the audience who have questions about this subject. Alexei Venediktov is one of them, and I would like to ask Maria Kitayeva to pass him the microphone.

Marina Kitayeva: Editor-in-Chief of the Ekho Moskvy radio station. By the way, he was at the Bolotnaya Square rally as an observer.

Alexei Venediktov: Good afternoon, Mr Putin. You are talking about the opposition, but trust me there was more to it than just an opposition rally on Bolotnaya Square. You are now responding to the opposition but what are you going to say to the new disgruntled, the new offended who believe that their votes had been stolen? What are you going to do about the elections that they don’t trust? They are going to stage legally another rally on December 24. They had demands and requests; they were looking for justice, which is also very important. I would like you to address your answer to these people, not the opposition.

Vladimir Putin: First, I have already made my point clear. I said that different kinds of people gathered there, and I was pleased to see fresh, healthy, intelligent and energetic faces of the people who were actively expressing their views. I can say it again that if this is the result of the Putin regime, then I’m truly pleased that we have such people in our country now.

As for the dispute settlement procedure, it is clearly set out in the law. In some cases, before the election results are summed up, election commissions may recount the votes, and they have actually been recounted in St Petersburg at the request of the opposition parties. However, after the bottom line has been drawn, such disputes should be taken to court, and we should certainly expect our courts to act in an objective and decisive manner.

Maria Kitayeva: There are different opinions about the protest on Bolotnaya Square, including one that’s opposite to Alexei Venediktov’s position. Here in the audience we have Valery Yakushev, a veteran worker at Uralvagonzavod.

Valery Yakushev: Good afternoon.

Vladimir Putin: Give the man a microphone, he won’t run off with it.

Valery Yakushev: To put it simply, I believe that no matter how good things are in a given family or household, there are always certain imperfections and someone is always unhappy with the way things are. I’m talking about the elections. About 100 people gathered on the main square in Nizhny Tagil. Why? The Uralvagonzavod plant has work orders up to the neck. We have pre-placed orders for the next year already, so we will work and do so like never before. Back in the Soviet times, we used to make 20,000 – 21,000 train cars. Currently, we are making 24,000 train cars, which is well above target. In other words, people are confident about their future. Certainly, there are some people who are dissatisfied. People aren’t happy about the performance of the housing and public utilities sector. They keep getting multiple utilities bills covering the same services and being cheated. They’ve been talking about this for six months now to no avail. These issues should be dealt with immediately. More than that, those found responsible should be punished. People should be able to see that the perpetrators are punished.

People believe in better life. All political parties have one goal, which is to improve people’s lives. Red tape should be made extinct, so that people become the focus of the bureaucracy and sleazebags don’t hide behind parliamentary immunity, be it municipal, district, regional councils, or even the State Duma. We have such people.

We should focus on agriculture, and do so in practical terms, so that our tourists going to Egypt bring their own potatoes with them, not the other way round.

I wish to address all Russians now. Don’t invite trouble to Russia. We have lived through a lot of trouble already. We don’t need any more great revolutions.

I am a deputy of the State Duma. I will do my best to fight for justice, and I believe that we will be able to make people happy, and have all leaders, from the prime minister to production foreman, work for the benefit of the people.

Ernest Mackevicius: Will you like to ask the prime minister a question?

Valery Yakushev: I believe that the things I said may well become reality with the help of the prime minister. Here’s a directive instead of a request: burn out red tape and cheating of people with a red-hot iron. Thank you.

Vladimir Putin: As for agriculture, I’m sure we’ll get back to it today. I’m sure there will be questions connected with agriculture during our conversation.

As far as bringing potatoes from Egypt, I haven’t heard anything about it. This sounds exotic. As you may know, Egypt is a major importer of Russian grain. One couldn’t even think about it a few decades back. We imported all of our grain. We bought grain from Canada, the United States and Australia. Today Russia is the world’s third largest grain exporter. This never happened before. Certainly, this is due to the hard work and dedication of our agricultural workers, but I believe that state support has also played its part. We have restored our export potential this year.

Ernest Mackevicius: We have another question about elections that came to our website. People put on white ribbons during the rally in downtown Moscow. These ribbons look like a symbol of a future colour revolution. Do you agree with such an assessment?

Vladimir Putin: I have already said what I think about these events in general. I think we should change the subject. I’m sure there are many other interesting questions.

Ernest Mackevicius: I’m afraid we will keep coming back to it.

Vladimir Putin: By all means, if it really is so interesting, I’m ready to discuss it.

As for ribbons and colour revolutions, I think that things are very clear here. This is a proved scheme to destabilise society. I believe that this scheme didn’t come into being all by itself. We know about the orange revolution in Ukraine. Certain members of the Russian opposition went to Ukraine back then and served as official advisors to President Yushchenko. Naturally, they are bringing these practices back here to Russia.

Frankly speaking, when I saw on TV what some of them were wearing on their chests, I'll tell you, though it might be somewhat inappropriate, I thought they were some weird symbols for the fight against AIDS – condoms, if you'll excuse me. It struck me as odd that they would unpack them first, but upon a closer look, I saw that they weren’t condoms after all. But at first, I thought, good, they are promoting a healthy lifestyle, Doctor Roshal would approve. This is a major issue for young people.

Ernest Mackevicius: Incidentally, all Just Russia members wore the ribbons at their conference.

Vladimir Putin: Great. Well done.

Protests are a good thing as long as they are lawful. People have a right to express their discontent with what the government is doing, since the government is not behaving as it should or is not adequately responding to the challenges of the day. People often experience injustice, and it is natural and appropriate that they would react to it. But I do not think it is right or appropriate to let oneself be dragged into any schemes aimed at destabilising society.

Moreover, you just pointed out that a lot of people attended these rallies, the Moscow rally, to express their discontent with how the government is treating them. But look at what we saw on TV. Did you hear what some of the opposition leaders were saying who called upon these people to protest? Do you know what they said to urge the people forward? “Go, you sheep!” What's that all about? Is it right to treat people like cattle? People are discontent with the government. But are these the people that they want in the government instead?

I don’t think that those who joined in the protest shouldn’t have – well I know that the organisers even paid some students (a good idea, giving university students an opportunity to earn a little cash) – they still shouldn’t have let themselves be humiliated by those leaders. It's unacceptable.

Ernest Mackevicius: I would like to give the floor to another studio moderated by my colleague, Dmitry Shchugorev. Please Dmitry, go ahead.

Dmitry Shchugorev: As I said, we have been joined by Anatoly Kucherena, a lawyer and member of the Public Chamber. Please pose your question.

Anatoly Kucherena: Good afternoon Mr Putin.

We began this discussion with the events at Bolotnaya Square, and I understand how important this issue is. But still, Mr Putin, concerning relations between the government and society, between the government and each citizen, you too have come across a number of facts indicating the failure to find common ground at this point.

After a few hours of taking your calls at the telephone hotline yesterday, I can say that all of the people whom I spoke with personally complain that they are unable to reach an agreement with their local governments.

I spoke with Natalia Khorkova from the village of Novosokolniki in the Pskov Region. She said that she, along with other villagers, have been trying to get their homes hooked up to the gas distribution grids since 2005. They have tried on several occasions to see the mayor, the local administration head. They say that the mayor laughed in their faces and said there was nothing he could do, that he needed an executive who could deal with the problem.

As I see it, in this situation – which is not unique to the Pskov Region, I have had calls to a similar effect from the Moscow Region as well – we should probably think about changing the format of interaction itself between regional/municipal authorities and the people.

Why is it that we have failed to resolve this problem? You often meet with people when you travel around the country putting out fires. As prime minister, you do what you can. But why is it that we cannot convince local authorities even to hear what people have to say?

People often complain about this when they call – that they want to see their mayor in order to discuss their problems, that they want to take part in decisions about where to build bridges and other facilities, that they do not want these decisions to be imposed upon them. It appears as though the governments are working “for the people” but without the people. I don’t think this is right. The times are gone when this was the norm. I think now is the time to think about this.

We receive a lot of complaints addressed to you or to the Public Chamber. And we always ask ourselves why they are writing to us. It's because their local authorities won’t listen.

I would like to hear what you think about the format of interaction. The people who are joining the protests are discontent. So they protest. I attended the event at Bolotnaya Square as a public observer and talked to the people, as did Alexei Venediktov.

People came to support some slogans that they didn’t even hear. They stood there discussing other matters and other problems. They came for a reason.

That is why I'm saying it is high time we change the format of interaction. It seems we must try to do things for the people and with the people. I think we have to listen to what people are saying, ordinary people, and then sit down and really think how we could improve. I was thinking about your idea of using web cameras at polling stations – well perhaps not just at polling stations, but at city halls and regional government premises, to keep an eye on how governors and municipal leaders….

Thank you.

Ernest Mackevicius: Mr Kucherena, you have made yourself very clear, so let's try to save time.

Vladimir Putin: There, do you see how authority reacts? He’s the authority here today, and that was his response to the public opinion.

Ernest Mackevicius: And I have my own authority and format. An implacable stopwatch authority.

Vladimir Putin: This is unacceptable. We need to give people the opportunity to speak.

Anatoly Kucherena: You see Mr Putin, they won’t let me continue freely.

Vladimir Putin: I certainly support you.

Anatoly Kucherena: Mr Putin, this is truly important. I know how much time you are devoting to this. But it is not your job to travel and resolve all problems personally. We need to think about changing the administrative model. I understand that it is not easy and that it will concern the federal government, along with other issues as well, but we have to think about how we can be closer to the people and how to work together to address their everyday concerns.

Vladimir Putin: I will answer your question in a moment. I glanced over at the crawl line while you were talking. “Will you reintroduce daylight-saving time?” We’ll talk about this later. There was a serious question about single mothers and about raising veterans’ pensions.

Veterans’ pensions are currently higher than the benefits received by other retired people across the country. The average pension will be 8,350 roubles this year, but we will certainly index it further, also for the veterans next year, and we are planning a significant increase for retired military – by an average of 60%. I wanted to mention this briefly.

Now back to your question. This is a very important issue. I would like to cite another idea of Solzhenitsyn’s. He gave a lot of attention to the municipal level of government. When we met, I remember him describing in detail his ideas for strengthening the municipal level of government. I truly believe that he was right. The municipal authorities are the closest to the people, and logically, they should be the most accessible. Therefore, this is the most important level because people’s daily lives directly depend on the efficiency of the work of municipal agencies. This is my first point.

Second. It is important that municipal authorities are effective and independent enough to carry out the functions entrusted to them. Honestly, the level of financing and the sources of funding are not enough for the municipalities to meet their goals. This level is too low, and this significantly reduces the effectiveness of municipal governments.

A working group has been formed for this reason in the federal government, led by Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Kozak, to redistribute authority and funding. This is going to be done.

At the same time, even with sufficient resources and possibilities, we still often come up against a lack of concern. “Thieves and the others should be sent to jail more often,” – I’m reading from the crawler again. This is true, but we shouldn’t turn it into a witch-hunt.

What’s important is that municipal authorities are elected directly. Voters should be careful about whom they elect. They shouldn’t simply sell their votes to some local quasi-oligarch or their proxies; they should elect people who are well known and respected in their village or town, who can make a difference, meet their goals and talk to people directly.

I have already told this story. It’s an old story in fact. [Sergei] Shoigu went to one of the regions (Nikolai is nodding because he's familiar with the story) in winter because there was an emergency – the heating broke down in one of the towns because the pipes burst. So Shoigu urgently flew to the region, met with the local leadership, and asked one of the local officials to accompany him to that town. The official says he won't go. Why not? They’ll beat me there, honestly. Shoigu says, what do you mean you won’t go, the people there are freezing. He still refuses. So Shoigu grabs him and drives to the airfield, where they are to board a plane or a helicopter. They go into a building to wait. The local official says, I’ll be back in a minute, I need to use the bathroom. He never came back. He escaped through the back door. Escaped, how do you like that? A local government official, imagine.

What can I add here? They should certainly be given more opportunities and stricter requirements. But at the same time, voters should take a little more responsibility during local elections. We need a comprehensive approach to strengthening the municipal level of government, which is a very important segment of the country’s administration.

Ernest Mackevicius: There are some more questions about the elections that we cannot omit, Mr Putin, but they are brief.

Russia has started a presidential election campaign. Like other candidates, you have submitted documents to the Central Election Committee for registration. Here is a question from our programme’s website: “You were President for eight years; you have achieved a lot as Russian Prime Minister.

The question is: If elected, how do you see the mission of Russian President Vladimir Putin in 2012?”

Vladimir Putin: First of all, thank you for your positive comments on what has been achieved.

We may have a lot of unresolved issues left but there are still things that I believe are hallmark achievements of the previous years. I actually thought we would start with it, and I even made a few notes on this year’s results, so let me tell you about it.

What we managed to do in the previous years in the social sphere is crucial, I believe. In 2000, the share of our population living below the poverty line even under Russian standards – which are far more modest than, say, in European countries – was 29%. Almost one third of the country languished in poverty. Can you imagine the state the society was in?

Over the course of these ten years we have reduced the number of people living below the poverty line by half, and today their share is 12.5%. It is still very high, higher than in European countries. Nevertheless, this is a trend, and an obviously positive one.

In 2000, the average monthly wage in the country was 2,232 roubles. Adjusted to inflation accrued over these years, the average wage today should be 7,400 roubles. This is what we would have come to naturally, if we had developed.

Today, the average monthly wage in the country is not very high, but still it is 23,400 and not 7,400. And this is despite the economic crisis and a certain decline in the population’s incomes, a decline in wages. This is the most important thing. I am now not talking about strengthening our statehood, about strengthening of our positions on the international stage, etc. I believe these are obvious things.

But even if we look back at the crisis, we managed to get over it thanks to our accrued potential – and we have almost doubled the size of the country’s economy over these years; thanks to the fact that the economy had expanded, it became more stable and its financial element became more secure. As I have already said,  the 2009-2010 crisis did not hit Russia as hard as other countries. Even then, the real incomes of our population were growing a little, the real income minus inflation, I’d like to emphasise.

What do we have this year? The economy will grow by 4.2%-4.5%, while in Europe it will be 1%-1.2%. Next year, many leading European economies and the United States expect a zero growth, and some European countries even project a recession. These are official figures. The economy will be down. We are not happy about it. There is nothing to be happy about, because it can affect us, too. But nevertheless, our performance is much better and more stable.

An important target we have been working towards for many years is lowering the inflation rate. Let me recall that in the early 2000s, inflation was 30%, and earlier it had sometimes exceeded 100%. Now we have an all-time low inflation rate. Russia has never had such results in its recent history. This year, it will be just above 6%. We are reaching the level of European countries: Britain has an inflation rate of 5% today. This is a very good result for Russia. Of course, we will have to maintain this trend towards lowering and targeting inflation.

Finally, a very important economic indicator is the unemployment rate. We have brought the unemployment rate to below the pre-crisis level. Under the ILO methodology, we now have 6%. This is a crucial indicator of the economy’s health. How about debt? Do you remember what it was to begin with? We had 120 billion of debt and 12 billion in international reserves. Everything was very unsteady and shaky.

I remember how Mr Primakov made the first step towards the recovery of the system as he became prime minister. We did not simply maintain that trend, but strengthened it manifold. Today, we have the world’s third biggest international reserves. We have practically restored them to the pre-crisis level. We haven’t reached this target completely but we are close. And we have the smallest foreign debt of all developed economies: 10%.

Let me point out that in Italy, for example, the debt is 145% of the country’s GDP; in Greece, it is 162% and in Japan, over 200% of GDP. Our debt is 10%, out of which foreign debt accounts for mere 2.5%; it is almost nothing. We have a healthy economy and we can use this foundation to successfully develop the social sphere; we should tread carefully here, however, in order not to tip the balance. But this year’s results are nevertheless positive.

As I have said, GDP will grow by 4.2%-4.5%, industrial production by 5.1%. Wages in real terms are not growing as fast as we would like them to but still, there will be a real growth of 2.9%.

We have indexed all pensions, even though last year we raised them simultaneously by over 40% - something no one was doing during the crisis, as I have repeatedly said. Others acted very differently: they lowered and froze pensions and raised the retirement age, but we chose a different path. This is what has been done. The challenges that remain are completely different. They are far more difficult than the ones we have been dealing with until now.

We need to strengthen our political system, first of all. We need to expand the foundations of democracy in the country so that people begin to feel their direct connection with the authorities at the municipal, regional and federal levels, so that trust in the authorities grows and the political system becomes self-sufficient and resistant to external shocks and to all kinds of impostors that are trying to get in here from the outside and to influence our domestic political processes. This should be stopped completely.

We need, of course, to diversify the economy, to modernise and renew it. We need innovation and modernisation to penetrate the brain of every citizen, for innovation to become part of our general policy. And, of course, we need to improve and develop our social sphere, so that no one feels neglected by the government.

These are the tasks that we will need to address. Of course, if people decide to trust me with this work, I will be glad to continue putting in as much effort as I have done so far.

Ernest Mackevicius: Our studio audience is gradually joining the conversation. I am giving the floor to Maria Kitayeva and her guests.

I would like to ask our distinguished guests to make their questions brief so that everyone has an opportunity to address the prime minister.

Maria Kitayeva: As I said at the beginning of our programme, we have with us today lawyer Andrei Makarov, a State Duma deputy. I am giving the floor to him.

Andrei Makarov: That’s OK, I can hold the microphone myself. Mr Putin, they won’t let me hold the microphone.

Maria Kitayeva: Promise me you will be brief, and I’ll let you.

Ernest Mackevicius: This is a journalist’s only weapon. Don’t take it away, please.

Andrei Makarov: ... in my own hands, that’s what it is called.

Vladimir Putin: The microphone is power here. Seize it.

Andrei Makarov: Thank you.

Mr Putin, I would like to follow up on what you have just said.

President Putin’s super task was clear at the time you were talking about now – the country was on the brink of a civil war and it had to be saved. This task has been successfully completed.