Putin to meet with members of veteran organizations Wed.

MOSCOW, January 19 (Itar-Tass) - Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin
is to meet with members of veteran organizations on Wednesday.
Vyacheslav Volodin, Vice-Premier and chief of the government staff,
Tatyana Golikova, Minister of Health and Social Development, officials of
relevant ministries and agencies, and members of the State Duma lower
house of parliament will also take part in the meeting with vets.
A government press service official said, "At the forthcoming meeting
it is palnned to touch upon a wide range of legal, social,
property-related and other matters being raised by veterans, such as,
specifically, the establishment of a single network for consulting aid to
veterans, the development of the network of homes for the aged, other
institutions and forms of social servives to the veterans, efforts to
raise the level and quality of medical aid, provision of medicines, to
lower tax burden, and develop programmes to promote active longevity".
Veterans' organizations, which currently operate in the Russian
Federation, bring together participants in the Great Patriotic War (GPW)
of 1941-1945, veterans of the Afghan War, and of a number of military
conflicts in the territory of the former Soviet Union, personnel of
security services and law enforcement agencies.
The veterans' organizations are aiming to protect the civil,
socio-economic, and labour rights of the veterans, and their rights of the
individual, improve their material position, medical and everyday services
to veterans, legal aid to veterans and members of their families, to
promote the patriotic education of young people, and military history
studies.
Every year the government of the Russian Federation gives state
support to the public organizations of the war veterans, those of the
veterans of the Armed Forces and law enforcement agencies, partially
refunding expenses on their statutory activities. About 269.9 million
roubles are to be allocated from the Federal budget for these purposes in
2011.
It is expected that veterans' associations that engage in socially
important work will also get direct financial support on the part of the
State. All in all, 900 million roubles will be assigned to such
organizations in 2011.
A special-purpose Federal Programme is being worked out to assist
non-profit associations. The financing of this programme will total about
4,500 million roubles in the period from 2011 to 2013.
Special attention is being devoted to support for GPW veterans: they
receive up to 23,000 roubles while the widows of the fallen soldiers get
17,000 roubles monthly.
Over the past three years, more than 170,000 million roubles were
channeled into providing veterans with housing. Due to that, over 145,000
war veterans improved their housing conditions. Social support measures
have been instituted in the payment of housing rent and utility charges,
the government press service points out.
Various subdivisions have been set up at a number of Federal
ministries -- the Health Ministry, Interior Ministry, Defence Ministry,
the Ministry for Emergencies, and in organizations that are under their
jurisdiction -- to tackle the social problems of the war veterans, the
veterans of military service, veteran workers, and pensioners.
In view of the fact that each ministry handles solutions to the
socio-economic problems of the elderly people within the scope of their
narrowly specialized powers, participants in the forthcoming meeting will
also mull forming a coordinating body at government level to give support
to senior citizens: a Coordinating Council for Veteran Affairs (to deal
with the problems of senior citizens).
The Council will be in charge of introducing proposals to monitor and
improve the socio-economic position of the elderly people, raise the
quality of their life, establish measures of social support, and work out
consolidated solutions to the socio-economic problems of senior citizens
with capacity for work, the government press service announcement said.

.Icebreakers, factory ship slowly advance to a safe area.

VLADIVOSTOK, January 19 (Itar-Tass) - A ship convoy consisting of the
icebreakers Krasin and Admiral Makarov and the factory ship Sodruzhestvo
on Wednesday are proceeding slowly in the northerly direction across the
ice of the Sea of Okhotsk on their way to a safe area, Tatyana Kulikova,
head of the press center of the Far Eastern sea shipping company, has told
Itar-Tass.
The ships are at a distance of about 40 miles from the area where the
factory ship will be able to sail independently of the
icebreakers'assistance. The ice-trapped refrigerator Bereg Nadezhdy (Shore
of Hope) is awaiting its turn to be led to an open water.
On December 31, 2010, several ships found themselves trapped in the
ice in the Sea of Okhotsk, requesting assistance. Those were the factory
ship Sodruzhestvo, the refrigerator Bereg Nadezhdy, the research vessel
Professor Kisewetter, and the trawler Mys Yelizavety (Cape Elisabeth). Two
of the ships have been already piloted to a safe area.
The rescue operation may continue for about another week. Weather is
so far auspicious for the operation.
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