“This will restore justice”: political scientist Zudin assessed the measure to write off the state debt of the regions

The assistance proposed by Vladimir Putin will become a stimulating factor

Russian President Vladimir Putin, during his address to the Federal Assembly, proposed writing off regional debts on budget loans. MK asked the expert how effective this measure of assistance is.

Vladimir Putin proposed writing off 2/3 of the regions’ debts on budget loans. According to the president’s estimates, this will save them 200 billion rubles annually from 2025 to 2028. He emphasized that “this money should be used for investment and infrastructure programs.”

As of October 1, 2023, the public debt of the regions of the Russian Federation amounted to 3.145 trillion. rub. The top three cities in terms of public debt were: Moscow region (322.9 billion rubles), Moscow (264.7 billion rubles), Nizhny Novgorod region (137.8 billion rubles). The Nenets Autonomous Okrug, Kaliningrad Region and the Republic of Buryatia became the record holders for the rate of reduction in public debt.

We asked Alexey Zudin, a political scientist and senior lecturer at MGIMO University of the Russian Foreign Ministry, about how much this will help the regions:

“Judging by the entire complex of circumstances that characterize both the situation in the regional economy and the situation in relations between the federal center and the regions, a truly serious and stimulating measure has been proposed. Here, if there is any question, it lies in the degree of this assistance and the purity of the implementation. By the purity of implementation we mean the degree to which this measure can be practically implemented: without losses, without failures, without any deformations.”

– What problems may arise during the practical implementation of this measure?

– First of all, these are standard problems that lead to a discrepancy between plans and their practical implementation. They are associated with possible bureaucratic failures, dishonest behavior of individual participants, and insufficient consideration of the specific situation on the ground.

– There are those regions that tried to pay off their national debt, and there are those that did not pay. From this point of view, how fair does this measure seem?

– Regions that tried to pay off their debt have great resource capabilities. It was this circumstance that helped them make these regular payments. If the question of justice arises here, then this justice, it seems to me, is not violated by the measure proposed by the president, but is restored. Because it helps regions with fewer resources to rise to a new level. Catch up with those regions that still have resource advantages.