Siberia IS the future, declares Vladimir Putin

The development of Siberia and the Far East should be a priority for Russia throughout the 21st century, said the President in an historic announcement in his state of the nation address. 

He promised 'five year tax holidays on income tax, extraction tax... taxes on land and property and a preferential rate of insurance premiums that is very important for highly technological products' in a bold statement of intend for the development of Russia's gateway to Asia and the Pacific.

'The resources of the state and private business have to go to development, to the achievement of strategic goals,' he told senior officials in the Grand Kremlin Palace. 'For example, like building up Siberia and the Far East. This is our national priority for the entire 21st century. The tasks that are to be resolved are unprecedented in scale, and this means our steps have to non-standard.'

The president ordered prime minister Dmitry Medvedev to take under his 'personal control' an initiative clearly seen as of immense strategic importance to Russia's future. 'The terms for business will be competitive there, with key business centres, procedures of getting permits for construction, connection to the electric power grid and customs' clearance,' he said.

'We will use actively the capacities of the Development Fund of the Far East to resolve the issue of infrastructure in these territories.'

He gave officials until 1 July 2014 to set the legal procedures in motion and overcome bureaucratic hurdles. 'I ask the prime minister to put this work under his personal control,' he stressed. 

The tax perks will not include oil and gas, which are anyway seen as 'profitable', he said. 

'We have already made the decision on a rate break on profit tax and a number of other taxes for new projects in the Far East. I think it appropriate to extend this regime to all of Eastern Siberia, including Krasnoyarsk Territory and the Republic of Khakasia. Furthermore, I propose setting up a network of special territories of advanced economic development in the Far East and Eastern Siberia.'

The aim appears to be a far more diversified economy with the vibrancy and hunger for exporting of other Pacific rim competitors. The state should also relax other business-related conditions, like building-permit applications and customs procedures, to encourage development and bring the regions to a level competitive with rivals in the Asia-Pacific area.