PRESIDENT AND PRIME MINISTER DISCUSS RESULTS OF THEIR VISITS TO VIETNAM AND ITALY AND OTHER MATTERS








MOSCOW, March 3. /RIA Novosti correspondent/. Vladimir Putin had a working meeting on Saturday with Russia's Prime Minister Mikhail Kasyanov, the presidential press-service reported, noting that the two men discussed the results of the visit by the head of state to South Korea and Vietnam and of the trip by the Prime Minister to Italy.


	Kasyanov informed the President in detail of the results of cabinet meetings which discussed the results of economic development in 2000 and the tasks connected with the fulfilment of the federal budget in 2001.


	In the course of the conversation the results were also examined of the government's consideration of bills relating to the creation of favourable conditions for entrepreneurial activity, and in particular for the  removal of administrative barriers.


	Other subjects covered included the state of Russian-Ukrainian cooperation in the financial and economic sphere.


	The head of state and the prime minister also discussed preparations for next week's meeting of the national privatisation council set up under the President, which is to look into a pension reform.