Transcript of the beginning of the meeting:

Vladimir Putin: Mr Katyrin, the Chamber of Commerce and Industry is probably not only the most long-established, the oldest, but also the largest business association, comprising midsize and, in part, small businesses, although large businesses are also represented. This is not a new job for you, but the capacity in which you work has recently been changed dramatically. How have you adapted to this new post? What problems is the chamber facing, and what questions would you like to address to us?

Sergei Katyrin: Mr Putin, thank you for your confidence. Indeed, this is not an entirely new job for me, yet this new capacity entails a new form of responsibility. The Chamber of Commerce and Industry is indeed the largest business association in the country. The federal chamber has 174 branches around Russia, and its members include 207 federal-level unions and associations; there are 500 such unions working at the regional level. We have 34 committees working on legislation and regulations jointly with State Duma and Federation Council committees, ministries and agencies. So, in this context, we are implementing the decisions of the meeting where, among other things, I was elected, where I was given a vote of confidence.

We are working on a number of new projects. For example, you probably know that we have a large foreign network and offices in 16 countries, as well as bilateral business councils with entrepreneurs from 66 countries. This is a tool that allows us to work with potential investors. We have specifically set up a department concerning our foreign operation that will operate as a training centre in the federal chamber. We hope to use this division to create a bilateral cooperation framework for our regional chambers. This is a request from the regions as well as our foreign partners.

In particular, Gerhard Schroeder and I recently held a meeting in Hanover with representatives of German business, who are probably among the most knowledgeable about our operation. Judging by the interest they showed during the meeting, where we discussed the privatisation programme and [business] opportunities in Russia, we have a lot of work to do in this area, particularly in other countries, where this kind of information is not available.

What we are currently doing is preparing such information, not only on our website, but also in the places abroad where we have offices – in the languages of those places, so that foreign business people will be able to access and utilise this information as appropriate. We are carrying on with this work: we have launched this project in several pilot regions and will be working together with their governors. In the next few days – the process is already underway – we will sign a series of agreements involving regional chambers, regional administrations and our federal chambers to pave the way for a bilateral cooperation framework for our regions.

We have already reached agreements with several governors.

Vladimir Putin: Does your contact with regional authorities go further than the signing of documents? What practical results can you report? Are they listening to your opinions, or delegating functions to you? What is happening?

Sergei Katyrin: There is some movement. I cannot tell you that businesses have the same attitude to the chambers and follow their recommendations in all regions. But there are several respected, serious chambers that are working well.

We have established a system of municipal chambers in the Krasnodar Territory. Apart from the territorial chamber, there are also 30 chambers helping small business register necessary documents and providing general support there. The governor has willingly allowed us to involve the chamber in these processes.

There has also been a serious reaction to this project in the Stavropol Territory. I met with the governor there recently, when we held a conference on small business in the North Caucasus. We discussed functions that could be delegated to the chamber. For example, many regional chambers of commerce and industry have been entrusted with organising exhibitions and fairs.

By the way, nearly all regional chambers have responded to our call to join the Popular Front, and are active on its election campaign teams. We are still working on this issue in one or two republics, but I think they simply haven’t had time to contact the headquarters. But everyone supports the idea; people are even sending their requests to us. We are considering the requests of non-members first, business representatives who are not party members.

And second, we are now gathering together problems and issues that we would like to include in our agenda.

Vladimir Putin: Excellent, this is exactly what the Popular Front was created for.

Sergei Katyrin: Yes, unfortunately, there are still problems that need to be addressed. I think you know them as well as I do. Some of these problems are very acute, such as questions of electrical power supply, which you are surely aware of. Several regions, especially northern ones, have raised the problem of the shortage of rail cars more than once – we have met with railway companies to discuss it. They satisfy only a fifth of the demand for rail cars. We have also discussed this problem with Vladimir Yakunin (president of the rail monopoly Russian Railways) and his colleagues, and have held several meetings on this problem.

There have been changes, but they haven’t been dramatic. For instance, we continue to receive complaints from Kirov that the problem has not been resolved, that goods are still stored there waiting to be shipped out, which affects wages and other social issues. We are working to resolve this problem.

I think there will be proposals regarding specific individuals. In addition, 30 regions are preparing for local elections and we are encouraging colleagues to consider [possible candidates] with other business associations, not just the chambers. We all want honest, worthy people to be elected.

Vladimir Putin: Honest, worthy with suggestions for solving the problems we are facing.

Sergei Katyrin: Yes, this is exactly how we are organising our work. We will also look in general at who would be able to work at the federal level and offer solutions to these and other problems.

Vladimir Putin: What about the functions that have been party delegated, or might be in the future? What is the situation with this?

Sergei Katyrin: I have mentioned organising exhibitions and fairs. I think the Chamber of Commerce and Industry could supervise this activity in all regions.

Vladimir Putin: Yes, it could. But I was referring to regulatory functions.

Sergei Katyrin: Foreign trade and regulation… Mr Putin, the point is that the legislation does not allow us to do this. The chamber is not a state agency and giving us some functions that involve handling funds and so forth – the legislation does not permit it.

Vladimir Putin: But there are functions that we delegate to self-regulatory organisations, in construction for example.

Sergei Katyrin: Under the law, the chamber is not a self-regulatory organisation, but we are working in this regard to provide support to small business. We have drafted some possible options, but the problem is we are hindered by the fact that legislation allows some things and prohibits others. Still, we have formulated a number of proposals that can be implemented wherever local legislation permits. In some regions, we have the right to engage in international commercial activity. For example, the Kemerovo Region Governor Aman Tuleyev has given the chamber the right to work with foreign delegations, to hold talks with them, and so on. We are looking at the best practices and recommending that our colleagues implement it.

Small business is especially interesting to us, because this is where the most problems and ailments come from. We are working on this now as well. I hope to formulate and try out our proposals, and to apply them on a wider scale if we have success in the pilot regions.

Vladimir Putin: Good.