經濟衰退: 俄羅斯總統減薪

A few weeks ago the NHK News on-line reported the following:

ロシア大統領 景気悪化で給与削減

3月6日 22時55分

ロシアのプーチン大統領は原油価格の下落やウクライナ情勢を巡る欧米の制裁による景気の悪化で国民から不満の声が上がるなか、大統領自身やメドベージェフ首相の給与を今月から削減することを決めました。

ロシアでは主な輸出品の原油価格の下落に伴う通貨ルーブルの急落やウクライナ情勢を巡る欧米の制裁などの影響で景気が悪化していて、ロシア政府はことしの歳入は去年に比べて４％程度、落ち込むという見通しを示しています。
こうした状況のなか、ロシアのプーチン大統領は６日、大統領令に署名し、今月１日から年末までの大統領自身とメドベージェフ首相の給与と、ことし５月１日以降の大統領府の職員など一部の公務員の給与をそれぞれ１０％削減することを決めました。プーチン大統領は、ウクライナ南部のクリミアを一方的に編入したあとの去年４月、大統領自身とメドベージェフ首相の給与を２倍余りに引き上げていましたが、このところの景気の悪化で国民から不満の声が上がるなか、みずからの給与を減らすことで不満が政権批判に結びつくのを避けるねらいもあるとみられます。
ロシアはすでにことしの歳出を１０％削減する計画を発表していますが、現地のメディアによりますと政府内では職員が出張する際に空港のラウンジの利用を控えるなどといった追加の歳出削減案も検討されているということです。

(試譯文)

Starting from this month (March) Russian president Putin decided to reduce both his own salary and that of Prime Minister Medvedev in response to the increasing dissatisfaction voiced in the country due to deterioration in business as a result of a falling oil price, together with the sanction by both the European and American due to the Ukrainian situation.

Business was aggravated by a slump in the ruble currency due to a fall in the price of oil which was the main export of Russia, together with the effect of the European and American sanction over the Ukrainian situation. Because of that Russian government indicated that the perspective on this year’s revenue would go down by about 4 % compared with last year.

Under such circumstances President Putin signed a presidential decree on the 6^th (March) to reduce 10 % of his own salary and that of Prime Minister Medvedev starting from the first of this month (March) up to the end of the year, and also certain civil servants such as officials in the presidential palace starting from May first this year. The President increased his own salary and that of Prime Minister Medvedev by about 2 times in April last year after Crimea, located at the south of Ukraine, was annexed unilaterally. It could be thought that President Putin, in view of the dissatisfaction voiced in the country due the recently deterioration in business, reduced his salary so as to avoid the dissatisfaction being linked to criticisms of his own regime.

Russia had already announced a plan to reduce this year's annual expenditure by 10 %. But according to the local media, it was said that additional plans on cutting expenditures were also being considered in the government, such as to cut down the use of a lounge at airports when the staff made a business trip.

It is interesting to note that President Putin had doubled his salary last year and subsequently reduced it by 10% in order to appease the Russian people.