Baltic's way of wooing western investment called a model for Russia

To attract investments in Russia from developed countries, there must be 'consistent progress on market reforms and steady improvement of the laws governing investments,' Vladimir Zavodnov declared at a Rosbalt roundtable on government investment policy and the mechanisms of state-private cooperation. Zavodnov is the chairman of the Moscow Licensing Chamber. 'These suggestions draw on the development experience of the nations of the Baltic area,' he said. He added: 'The experience of the Baltic states and of the countries of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) must be taken into account. They have something to teach us.'

Zavodnov noted that foreign investment in the Baltic area and in CIS countries is now three times what it was in the 1990s, when those countries, he said, 'first assumed the mantle of independent, self-standing governments.' He added: 'These countries took as goals for themselves a complete overhaul of how they do business and cooperation with Western nations. As a result, the investment climate there is much more favorable for Western investors,' the chairman of the Moscow Licensing Chamber said.