For Immediate Release
Office of the Press Secretary
May 24, 2002
Fact Sheet: Business Dialogue
Russian-American Business Dialogue
The Russian-American Business Dialogue (RABD) was established by the
Russian and American business communities and welcomed by Presidents
Bush and Putin at the July 2001 Genoa Summit. The Dialogue has been
steered by the U.S.-Russia Business Council, American Chamber of
Commerce in Russia, Russian-American Business Council, and the Russian
Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs, and is open to input from
interested companies and business associations in both countries.
The Dialogue is a business-to-business mechanism for expanding
contact between the two private sectors, identifying areas where laws
and regulations impede trade and investment, and providing a forum
where businesses' common interests and concerns can be raised with both
governments. Issues covered in the Dialogue's first annual report,
presented to the Russian and American Governments in Moscow, include:
- Facilitating visas and other aspects of business travel in
both directions between Russia and the United States;
- Improvement of the tax and regulatory climate for small
businesses in Russia;
- Market access improvements in both directions, including
Russia's accession to the WTO, and protection of intellectual property;
- Cooperation in the information technology arena, where Russia
and the United States have unique capabilities and potential;
- Improvement of Russia's investment climate (including such
issues as banking reform, improved corporate governance, and
facilitating cross-border leasing to bolster Russian companies access
to capital); and
- Judicial reform, including amendments to Russia's arbitration
code to encourage confidence in the enforcement of contracts.
The Russian-American Business Dialogue marks the first such
comprehensive effort by the United States and Russian business
communities to work together to develop consensus recommendations
across a full range of issues and industries, and to join together in
cooperative activities to promote trade and investment. The Business
Dialogue will continue its work.
# # #
|