OREANDA-NEWS. August 31, 2009. The current situation in the republic, methods for eradicating the terrorist threat, and solutions to economic problems were the subjects of discussion.

Seeing the difficult situation in the region, Mr Yevkurov returned to Ingushetia on August 22, 2009, interrupting a course of rehabilitation he was undergoing following the earlier attempt on his life.

Beginning of Working Meeting:

PRESIDENT OF RUSSIA DMITRY MEDVEDEV: I want to say how happy I am to see you back at work and in good shape, and I wish you success in this difficult task that you have chosen, namely, running Ingushetia.

There are many problems to deal with, and unfortunately, they include terrorism. Armed groups have stepped up their activities over the summer. They need to be caught and eradicated.

There are also economic problems that, unfortunately, have accumulated over the years, and that you have now begun resolving actively.

I hope that, together with the relevant ministers, and with your colleagues, you will be able to, if not resolve all of these problems immediately, at least set things moving in the right direction, so that everyone in the republic starts to see real change for the better. You have the possibilities you need for this, and you have what is most important of all – the will and the desire. I wish you success.

PRESIDENT OF INGUSHETIA YUNUS-BEK YEVKUROV: Thank you. I want to thank you for your support, especially while I was recovering. It is not so much your support for me personally that I want to thank you for, as for the moral support you have given Ingushetia’s people. Your visit to the republic on the first day that I was in Moscow, and your subsequent actions, all gave great moral support to the republic’s people. I thank you too for your support for the republic’s executive authorities while I was recovering. Thank you very much.

We are now continuing these efforts. We started our work long ago, started working, regardless of the fact that I was in hospital. There can be no turning from the chosen road, and we will resolve the terrorism problem, resolve the social and economic problems, and continue our work.

I had a meeting yesterday with the Interior Minister Rashid Nurgaliyev. We discussed the situation in the republic, spoke too about certifying law enforcement personnel and beefing up the law enforcement agencies with officers from other parts of the country, who will be able to train our local people and help them in their work for a time, until we normalise the situation.

I also met with Healthcare Ministry officials, and we discussed a number of matters. We are in contact with all of the different ministries and will continue our joint efforts.

DMITRY MEDVEDEV: I wish you success in these efforts and I hope that we will indeed succeed in resolving many of these problems rapidly.