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PUTIN CONSIDERS FORTHCOMING STATE DUMA ELECTIONS ANOTHER STAGE OF MULTIPARTY SYSTEM DEVELOPMENT IN RUSSIA

MOSCOW, May 16. /From a RIA Novosti correspondent/. - "I consider the forthcoming elections to the State Duma yet another stage of developing the multiparty system in Russia. It is a development towards a greater transparency of intentions, greater efficiency of action, greater responsibility to people," said Russian leader in his address to the Federal Assembly on Friday.

Strong and responsible authorities, based on consolidated society is necessary to preserve Russia, he emphasized. "Without strong authorities a breakthrough for the future is impossible," the President said.

He stressed that the country was facing serious problems and threats. "We have to be smart and strong to survive in the tough competitive struggle," the Russian head of state said.

"We should not only survive, we should gain significant economic, intellectual, moral and military advantages. Only by doing so will we preserve our stand among the world's largest powers," Putin pointed out.

He spoke in favour of a greater transparency of political parties' activities.

"I hope that in the near future our joint work will provide for a greater transparency of party life, will give people more unbiased information and thus more chances to make the right choice," the President said.

At the same time Putin "is anxious" about "certain peculiarities of the national party life", he said. "Mechanisms of financing political parties still remain a big mystery, while the market of pre-election and other political technologies to a significant degree remains a sector of the shadow economy," he explained.

"In transparency of financial operations on the political stage is often supplemented with unclear ideological positions and sometimes, to tell the truth, with certain political insincerity," Putin emphasized.

"Deputies known as liberals and proponents of progressive economic reforms in reality sometimes vote for bills devastative for the state budget," the President pointed out.

"Those who are not afraid to call businessmen robbers and bloodsuckers are not ashamed to lobby interests of big companies," he added. These words of the Russian leader were met with a continuous applause of the audience.