The Russian PM says a global recession is "possible" but it is not the outside risks that pose the biggest threat to Russia.
- Dmitry Medvedev: Russia wants to attract large-scale foreign investment
- Russia has low unemployment, low foreign debt and is open to partners, he says
- Tackling poor governance is the country's top priority, Medvedev says
- Russia ranks low in global corruption indices, which has held back investment
Davos, Switzerland (CNN) -- Russia's Dmitry Medvedev made a strong pitch for foreign investment in Russia Wednesday as he gave his first special address as prime minister at the World Economic Forum in Davos.
He painted a picture of a strong economy that is open to those who are "ready to be partners" and invest in Russia.
Follow the action live on CNN.com
This year Davos, a picturesque Swiss ski resort, is hosting nearly 40 world leaders and more than 2,000 executives. The world's top policymakers gather annually to discuss global issues, and are this time meeting under the banner of "resilient dynamism."
Medvedev sought to position himself as a reformer in a country that is moving determinedly forward.
Davos: Hotel industry and the economy
"Russia is an open country, whatever they might think or say," he said, referring to critics.
Russia's unemployment rate, at a little over 5%, is the lowest among developed countries, he said, and it also has an extremely low level of foreign debt.
Quest: U.S. economy to dominate Davos
"We need to see investment growing by 10% annually," he said. "Therefore we are interested in attracting large-scale foreign investment." That amount of investment expansion is needed to push Russia's economy beyond 4% growth, he said.
But Medvedev acknowledged that Russia needs to do a much better job of attracting foreign direct investment.
Russia ranks very low in global corruption indices, which has held back investment despite a sizable population of 142 million.
Medvedev said his government's top priority is to improve public governance.
But, he said, this is not a problem unique to Russia.
Is the rise of China creating conflict?
"It's nothing new --- humanity has been facing these problems for centuries, if not millennia," he said. "The more law and order, the more thieves and robbers. In that sense, little has changed."
Medvedev stressed that Russia is an open market now and pointed to membership in the World Trade Organization as a indication of that. The country's next priority is to gain membership of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, composed of the world's industrialized nations, he said.
Interactive: Europe's tale of boom and bust
The prime minister suggested this sends a strong message to the world, even though both structures "are not perfect," in his view.
He also spoke of the need to create an equal playing field for all businesses and to create a "single economic space" with Russia's neighbors, stretching from the Atlantic to the Pacific.
But the prime minister dismissed suggestions that this is an effort to somehow recreate the Soviet Union, saying Russia wants to play in the global market.
Interactive: How's your economic mood?
"There is no going back to the past," he said.
Executives have not been convinced in the past that Medvedev and Russian President Vladimir Putin are on the same page.
But the prime minister stressed that Russia has a global outlook and will continue dialogue with its European friends and partners.
"We are building our cooperation," he said, acknowledging that unilateral action could have "dire implications."
Medvedev said the G-20, which brings together the world's major economies, is becoming increasingly efficient and that this has helped limit the extent of the global economic crisis.
"We need to use modern technologies, crowd sourcing," he said. "Those technologies change the status and enhance the legitimacy of decisions made in government."
Davos 2013: New year, same old problems?
The speech echoed one Medvedev gave at Davos as his country's president in 2011, when he also pushed foreign investment in Russia while acknowledging that reforms were needed.
Russia last month assumed the rotating presidency of the G-20.
"The Russian presidency's main task will be to focus the G-20's efforts on developing measures to stimulate economic growth and create jobs," Putin said at the time.
Medvedev's comments come amid frosty relations with the United States after Putin signed a law in December prohibiting Americans from adopting Russian children.
The move by Russian politicians was widely seen as retaliation for a law that U.S. President Barack Obama signed December 14. That bill, called the Magnitsky Act, imposes U.S. travel and financial restrictions on those it considers human rights abusers in Russia.
留言列表