"Of course, in these conditions which we are living through now, we must carefully but still use our reserve funds ... first and foremost, the reserves of the government," he told a meetings with activists of The All-Russia People's Front, a pro-Kremlin public movement.

"This is just what these reserve funds are meant for - to finance social obligations at a time of economic decline - and this is what we will certainly do," he said during a visit to the Stavropol region in southern Russia. He did not specify what funds he was referring to.

(Reporting by Denis Pinchuk; Writing by Dmitry Solovyov; Editing by Vladimir Soldatkin)