Dmitry Medvedev's opening remarks:

Good evening, ladies and gentlemen. Allow me to welcome you here in Moscow. The World Economic Forum's expert council on Russia was set up just a short time ago, but judging from what I have heard today, there have been interesting discussions on various scenarios for the development of the Russian and global economies. Frankly, I do not feel it's appropriate to deliver a long welcoming address now after these six hours. Perhaps we should stop our discussion for today and have supper. Allow me to say some things that you are already well aware of – but still, it will give me pleasure to do so, because the present moment is truly a difficult one, and Russia, along with its specific role, also has an organisational mission which will become clearer in the next few years during our country's presidency in the G20 and then the G8. And, certainly, to some extent this global agenda will have an effect on everything we will do, one way or the other.

Every government works to create the right conditions for the dynamic development of the national economy and to boost its investment appeal. We do our best in this regard as well. I will not conceal that there are some factors which are causing us problems. To be honest, this is not the easiest year for Russia. However, a comparison of our economic indicators with those showing the growth of European economies or some other economies shows that we’re actually doing alright.

You have already discussed various scenarios. Quite possibly, we will hear some other speeches on this issue today. But I hope that we will implement a middle of the road scenario, to say the least. But I can tell you that, as Prime Minister, I have realised over the past few months that it is extremely difficult to draft the state budget, even in conditions of more or less positive economic growth. This is the first time that I have addressed this issue as Prime Minister. I feel sorry for my colleagues in Europe where the situation is really difficult. It proved extremely difficult to draft a national budget, which would allow Russia to develop, even in conditions of more or less acceptable economic parameters. Although, as I already said, we face no dilemma over choosing between development and fiscal consolidation. Nonetheless, I believe that we have to address both issues. There are various ways of doing this and at the end of the day, this will be the Government’s responsibility.

Russia already lives in a new dimension. I am very happy that we have made a substantial leap forward over the past few years, and that we have joined the World Trade Organisation (WTO). I will not hide the fact that as President and over the last few months I put in a great deal of effort in order to achieve this goal. I believe that this is good for our economy, although some Russian economic sectors will, naturally, face a number of challenges. Nevertheless, we will have to respond to some new challenges in light of the creation of the Customs Union and the Common Economic Space.

I remember that many sceptical remarks were voiced when the idea of the Customs Union emerged. Some of my colleagues said that Russia would never be able to join the WTO as a result of this. But I think the current situation refutes this. We have joined the WTO rather quickly. Once again, I would like to use this opportunity to thank the many people who assisted us with this, especially representatives of the business community, as well as some of my high-placed colleagues in power. We achieved our goal. It is now highly important to predict specific developments in the context of, I repeat, of Russia’s accession to the WTO and our affiliation with the Customs Union and the Common Economic Space. In this we would benefit greatly from the work of experts and from your detailed comments.

Actually, I would like to assess our issues in a broader context. Of course, the overall economic situation can hardly be called encouraging. On the one hand, we have become convinced of only one thing. I recall the first G20 summit when all of us tried to predict global economic developments for the next five years. Everyone drew different Latin letters. Optimists preferred the letter V, and the greatest pessimists opted for the letter L. In the long run, we got a middle range scenario, and still none of us is safe from the letter W. But, at any rate, we have survived the first wave of the crisis. All of us are now in a very uncertain situation, and we are getting ready to take subsequent action. Consequently, expert reports on global competitiveness, on global risks for us and my Government are very important for the decision-making process. And I would like to thank you for this as well. Incidentally, I am meeting with members of the Consultative Council on Foreign Investment here in this hotel tomorrow. We also consider this to be an important and major platform. Quite possibly, some of you will stay on here and we will see each other tomorrow, and we will have something to eat.

Well, this is probably what I wanted to say at the beginning. I would like to wish bon appétit to everyone. This is always much more important than boring introductory remarks. Bon appétit!

More to be posted soon...