Gorbachev wants East boosted

Press, 30 July 1986, Page 10

Gorbachev wants East boosted

NZPA-Reuter Moscow The Kremlin leader, Mikhail Gorbachev, has called for the rapid industrial development of the Soviet Far East, suggesting economic ties with other Pacific nations as one way to tap what he called its vast but neglected potential. Speaking in Vladivostok, 7000 km east of Moscow but facing Japan across a mere 300 km stretch of sea, he blamed central and local administrators for shortsightedness in not realis-

ing the full possibilities of the port’s hinterland. He would also direct the attention of Moscowbased Ministries to- the area.

In particular, he criticised officials’ failure to ensure a proper infrastructure of housing and other social facilities when building industrial enterprises, which had discouraged workers from settling in the area and slowed the region’s development compared with that of other republics.

“We must remedy the situation in a fundamen-

tai way, make certain that growth quickens rather than slows down 4 and change ... to all-out intensification through scientific and technological progress,” he said. According to Soviet figures from 1983, 80 per cent of industry and 70 per cent of the population are concentrated in the European part of the Soviet Union. Siberia and the Far East account for 10 per cent of the population and 90 per cent of fuel and energy resources. Mr Gorbachev said the

Communist Party’s fiveyear plan fdr 1988-1990; covered Far Eastern development to some extent but longer-term policies needed to be worked out He suggested/ the following seven guidelines for growth: • Export possibilities should be fully exploited and economic ties developed with other Pacific nations. Joint enterprises should be encouraged. • The Far East’s ocean location should be exploited. The fishing industry should shift increasingly to the area. of non-fer-

rous metals, such as gold and silver, and forests should be used to the full. ® The shortfall, in energy production, which curbed the growth of other industries, should be overcome. The Far East should meet its own energy needs. ® Industrial infrastructure should be made a priority. ® The latest scientific and technological advances should be applied, adapted to the region’s particular needs. • Social conditions, especially housing, should

be improved. Food, half of. which was now brought in from outside, should be produced locally. Mr Gorbachev, calling the Far East a “territory of vast natural wealth, huge social and economic possibilities and great international prospects,” also suggested that with its warm climate, it would be attractive to tourists. The naval base of Vladivostok and much of the surrounding area is closed to foreigners and hard tor Soviet citizens to visit