Russian President Dmitry Medvedev said he would like to see the modernization of the country carried out by ordinary people, and not just the political and business elite.
"I would like the people to be the modernizers - not only the political parties, not only the president with his iPod, or the jet set society," Medvedev told a meeting with Russian and foreign political experts at the Global Policy Forum in Yaroslavl.
The president said the ruling United Russia party was capable of carrying out this modernization.
The forum "The Modern State: Standards of Democracy and Criteria of Efficiency" is being held in Yaroslavl, 250 km northeast of Moscow. It gathers around 500 Russian and foreign experts, including the Valdai international discussion club participants.
YAROSLAVL, September 10 (RIA Novosti)