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Russian candidate outlines economic plan

Kremlin election favorite Dmitry Medvedev yesterday called for less state interference in Russia's economy in comments that indicated a shift from policies under the presidency of his mentor Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Outlining his economic program in a speech at a forum in the Siberian city of Krasnoyarsk ahead of a presidential election on March 2, Medvedev also called for an independent judiciary and greater protection of property rights.

"Most of the bureaucrats on boards of directors should not be there," Medvedev told the assembled officials and business executives in comments broadcast on the Vesti-24 news channel.

"They should be replaced by genuinely independent directors hired by the state to work in its interests," he said, referring to the massive state industrial corporations set up under Putin.

"A significant share of the functions carried out by state organs should be given over to the private sector" and more effort should be made by the government to protect private property, he said.

Medvedev is Russia's first deputy prime minister and chairman of state-controlled gas giant Gazprom, which is accused in the West of using energy exports to pressure neighboring ex-Soviet countries.

Medvedev, a former law professor, is seen as a relative economic liberal, although he is at the core of the Kremlin elite.

He was put forward as a candidate by Putin and the ruling United Russia party following parliamentary elections in December. Putin says he would serve as a powerful prime minister under Medvedev.

The election next month is seen as a shoo-in for Medvedev. State-controlled national television has given his campaign lavish coverage and he has the support of Russia's political establishment.

According to recent election polls, the three other candidates, Communist Party chief Gennady Zyuganov, ultra-nationalist firebrand Vladimir Zhirinovsky and obscure pro-Kremlin candidate Andrei Bogdanov stand virtually no chance. Much of Medvedev's support is an extension of Putin's own popularity.

Putin has overseen a period of relative stability and economic growth, in contrast to the turbulent post-Soviet 1990s. However his presidency has also brought a strengthening of the state's role in the economy, particularly in the lucrative energy sector and in industries such as aerospace, shipbuilding and new technologies.

Liberal politicians have been deeply critical of the state corporations, saying they reinforce inefficiency and are tools for political patronage.

In yesterday's speech, Medvedev also echoed many of the economic aims outlined by Putin, such as the need to move Russia from a dependence on raw materials towards innovation and to create a larger middle class.

"I think these targets are ambitious but, in my view, they are completely realistic," Medvedev said. He said his program as president would be "institutions, infrastructure, innovation and investment."

Kremlin critics such as Boris Nemtsov, a key economic reformer under Yeltsin and a former energy minister, have warned that these targets will fail because of Russia's "authoritarian" political system.

Russia's gross domestic product has grown at a yearly rate of around seven percent since 2002, thanks largely to lucrative oil and gas exports, and there has been broad stability compared to the turbulent years of Boris Yeltsin's presidency.

Large parts of the economy, however, are still languishing after the post-Soviet industrial collapse and the rapidly widening income gap in Russia means the benefits of economic growth have been uneven.

Medvedev said that corruption remained "the most serious illness affecting our society" and promised to strengthen a judicial system that is still notoriuosly prone to political influence.

He also said that as president he would ensure the stability of the ruble, price raw materials exports in the national currency and turn Russia into "one of the biggest financial centers in the world."
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