Dmitry Medvedev held a meeting on preparations for the 2014 Olympics. The President declared that designs for all Olympic facilities should be completed by the end of 2009 and that facilities should start being built by that date. Dmitry Medvedev said: "We are meeting today to talk about the preparations for the 22nd Winter Olympics, which will take place in Sochi in 2014, but perhaps there is a more important issue - the development of the city of Sochi as one of the key cities of Southern Russia, a centre of the Krasnodar Region”.

The key task is to conduct the Sochi Olympics at the highest level, Medvedev said. "For this purpose we also must create a quality sports infrastructure. This will require an upgrade of the transport network and hotel network, and certainly, ensuring the most comfortable conditions for conducting the Olympic games proper," said the president.

"This work should be carried out according to the schedule agreed upon with the International Olympic Committee. We are working on it. This is not so easy, but, nevertheless, we are in regular contact and will be paying particular attention," the Russian president added.

“This year we must finish designing the Olympic venues, begin construction of all the Olympic palaces and parks, and of course, finish putting in place systems to monitor and oversee the construction of the Olympic venues. One of the key tasks before us now is the preparation of the plots for sporting facilities, equipped sites. Firstly, there is the establishment of a system for the construction of residential accommodation for those who have had to move due to the building of Olympic venues. The company Olympstroi has been given the special right to build accommodation for such people, or buy it - which would of course speed up the process. The second point relates to Olympstroi’s duties to refund any money spent by the Krasnodar and Sochi City administrations on the relocation of residents. The third relates to the establishment of the right to use land for the construction of key Olympic venues, and a special decision was made which allows the possible reduction of the number of plots of land seized. For this all to be done to the highest possible standard, we must ensure full accountability. This already exists in all areas, there is the municipal control, governmental control, presidential control, which is looked after by the Presidential Control Directorate, and finally there is also the control exercised by the law enforcement agencies such as the prosecutor’s office and other structures. We must think about what happens after the Olympics. Our main aim is the development of Krasnodar region, and we understand that all the venues built for the Olympics must function not just as training grounds for professional sportsmen, but also as centres for the development of popular sport," the Kremlin.ru website said.

Since Sochi was selected as the 2014 Olympic host city, plans to build infrastructure and construction schedules have already been adopted, with the implementation of investments projects already underway, he said.

"Nevertheless, there is still a great deal more for us to do," the president added.