Chairman of the Board of Vneshtorgbank: “The country is ready for a historical breakthrough”

On the eve of the economic forum in Davos, Izvestiya published a keynote article by Andrey Kostin, chairman of the board of Vneshtorgbank, in which he shares his vision of the country's economic prospects.

The article is frankly pre-election in nature and is a panegyric to the current President of Russia V. Putin.

According to the official, "the unconditional victory of the Center Party and its representatives in single-mandate constituencies is strong evidence that *Russian society has finally recognized and accepted the strategic direction of movement ... Strong power. The unity of the nation. Reforms. Decent life ." (hereinafter highlighted in the text - * ed. ).

He believes that " "The main thing is that big business does not merge with the authorities, does not remain selfish and indifferent to the vital interests of society . It is precisely the desire to remove big business from power that, according to A. Kostin, is evidenced by the position of the president in the case of M. Khodorkovsky. However, "honest business" is not threatened by anything: "In intimidating each other with the upcoming redistribution of property, I am only surprised that there are people who sincerely believe in this ... Russian business will more reliably get on its feet and gain respect from its compatriots, the sooner he is imbued with deep patriotism .

We are not competent to comment on the economic calculations of A. Kostin regarding the development of the banking sector in Russia. However, I would like to dwell on the summary of the article:

*"The country is ready for a historic breakthrough. A reliable foundation for reforms has been created. Political and macroeconomic stability has been achieved ... The national mentality has adapted. The national business has also learned its lessons, having received several serious warnings from society for neglecting the problems of social inequality ... Elected a workable parliament There is a generally recognized leader who has proven his ability to consolidate the nation, political intellectual resources to solve the most complex problems.

It's a matter of "small". To take full advantage of a favorable set of circumstances, realizing this as a rare chance for a historical breakthrough "...*

It is not clear, however, a breakthrough - where? And why was it not implemented during Putin's "first term", when all these conditions (well, perhaps, except for the "warned business") were already in place.

Sources

• Russia has a rare chance for a historic breakthrough // News. 2004. January 21.