MOSCOW, November 28 (AVN) - The military reform will want a 365,000 personnel lay-off, 50,000 of which have no flats, Defence Minister Igor Sergeyev wrote in a letter to Prime Minister Mikhail Kasyanov.
In the mean time, the 2001 draft budget provides a total of RUR10.1bn (USD362.4m) for capital construction and national defence, which is enough to build apartments only for 8,000 servicemen.
In this context, the defence minister asked to give the Defence Ministry RUR3.2bn (USD114.8m) of additional revenues intended for realisation of the presidential housing certificates programme. The ministry will use the money to fund housing. Sergeyev said the ministry could build two times more apartments in Moscow than can be bought under the housing certificates programme.