Association President Schochin on Western companies and cooperation with America

In the presence of Russian President Vladimir Putin, Alexander Shokhin, President of the Russian Business Association RSPP, has taken up the cudgels for Western companies that continue to operate in Russia. "We believe that the normal operating conditions for friendly companies from unfriendly countries must be maintained as far as possible," Shokhin explained at yesterday's RSPP annual meeting. The phrase "friendly companies from unfriendly countries" sanctioning Russia was coined by Shokhin during the RSPP annual meeting two years ago. Addressing President Putin this time, Shokhin said: "And you supported the term, as far as I perceive it - pointing out that there are unfriendly elites (in these countries), but the companies (from these countries) can continue to work in Russia and even expand their presence." In the run-up to the meeting, the business association had drawn up its proposals for the resumption of economic cooperation with the USA "in the event of favorable conditions". The proposals were presented in yesterday's print edition of the Russian daily newspaper RBC. What the RSPP proposes for Russian-American cooperation: Development of deposits and extraction of mineral resources in the Murmansk region, the southern Urals, Siberia and the Sea of Okhotsk Cooperation in the Arctic Cooperation in space Cooperation in the energy sector, including nuclear energy Resumption of deliveries of Russian rolled aluminum alloys and titanium to American aerospace companies Resumption of cooperation with American smelters in the supply of Russian carbon-graphite products, in particular graphite and carbon electrodes Restoration and expansion of industrial cooperation in the field of renewable energies (RE), including the lifting of sanctions against Russian manufacturers of equipment for RE production (photovoltaic modules and inverters, electrotechnical equipment for solar power plants, etc.) According to RBC, the RSPP could also focus on the development and use of rare earths. In this area, Russia ranks fourth worldwide in terms of reserves and seventh in terms of production. The Russian Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment estimates domestic reserves of rare earth oxides (REO) at 28.5 million tons as of 1 January 2024. The Murmansk region is currently the most important mining area for rare earths. However, the loparite concentrate from the ores of the Lowosero deposit in the Murmansk region is only processed at the Solikamsk Magnesium Plant (SMZ) in the Perm region. Possible cooperation projects also include the joint production of aluminum, the main customer of which could be the aviation group Boeing. What President Putin said In his speech at the RSPP meeting, President Vladimir Putin announced right at the beginning that he had nothing "truly revolutionary" to share: "With some - or with many - of those present in the room, we meet regularly and discuss the most pressing issues for their companies. […] So we are all, as they say, in the know." We have compiled Putin's most important statements for you: "It is important to maintain the course of gradual development of the country, increase the competitiveness of the domestic economy and strengthen the positions of domestic companies and enterprises both on the foreign and domestic markets. To achieve this, we must consolidate our own sovereignty." "We will continue to promote business investment in the modernization of companies and production capacities based on our own technologies. In particular, we want to support the introduction of solutions in three key cross-cutting technologies: artificial intelligence, autonomous systems and digital platforms. In this area, there is scope for cooperation with other countries, including those from the high-growth regions of the world, the Asia-Pacific region and southern Eurasia. We want to expand such cooperation, especially within the framework of the BRICS alliance." "In order to increase investment and expand the scope for entrepreneurship, we will continue to reduce expenses for companies and organizations and cut red tape, which we are constantly talking about - I am also referring to the use of electronic services." "I have already referred several times to Russia's progress in international rankings on corporate governance. These are not only expert assessments, but also the opinions of entrepreneurs themselves on how comfortable it is to do business in Russia and operate in our markets. Nevertheless, the business environment needs to be constantly improved. And we are approaching this work systematically - with the participation of RSPP and other business associations." This article first appeared in the exclusive newsletter of the German-Russian Chamber of Commerce Abroad The post Association President Shokhin on Western companies and cooperation with America appeared first on ostwirtschaft.de.