STRATEGI ES FOR BUSINESS IN MOSCOW · A PROPOS Prince Yuri Dolgorukiy would have been extremely...

S T R A T E G I E S F O R B U S I N E S S I N M O S C O W

Come together, get ahead

A PROPOS

Prince Yuri Dolgorukiy would have been extremely pleased with today’s developments: the city he founded in 1147 on the banks on the Moscow River continues to develop and blossom. He would be particularly happy to learn that Moscow considerably expanded three years ago – a change that has put the Russian capital in the top six biggest cities on the planet.

July 1, 2012 is going to go down as an important day in the history of Moscow. On this day, the city’s total area more than doubled. Two districts (Troitsk and Sherbinka), along with 19 urban and rural settlements from the Len-insky, Naro-Fominsky and Podolsky districts of Moscow Oblast, were added to Old Moscow. The city’s total population grew by 240,000 people.

The news of Moscow’s expansion was met with mixed reactions in the city. According to a poll conducted shortly afterward, 41 percent of Muscovites supported the decision, 41 percent opposed the expansion, and 18 percent remained undecided. These results are fairly easy to understand. The very idea of New Moscow was confusing to many people: Why do we need it? What will be the outcome of these changes? What will happen to the city?

But a lot of time has passed since, and here are the results of a more recent poll, which was conducted by the Russian public opinion research center: 50 percent of Muscovites approve of the expansion, and just 30 per-cent are still against it. It is obvious that public opinion has shifted: the idea of New Moscow seems like a good idea to a lot more people now. There is another shocking figure: 40 percent of Muscovites residing in Old Moscow are ready to relocate to the new territories! This is also

easy to explain – New Moscow has a lot more space, a lot more land, a lot more greenery and forests. Living in a house that is next to a real forest and river is the dream of many city residents.

Before anything else, New Moscow means new op-portunities. Although the current economic climate is quite challenging, and although a general plan for New Moscow has yet to be confirmed (the plan is to be final-ized before July 2016), one thing is clear: adding new territories to the city has opened up a world of new op-portunities for the entire metropolitan area.

Don’t take our word for it – take a look at some figures that help illustrate how grandiose the city’s developments are. According to the plans drafted by city authorities, up to 100 million square meters of new real estate will be erected in New Moscow before 2035, along with 53 km of metro (the first metro station, Salarievo, will be open in December-January) and 700 km of roads, about 1,200 km of high-speed tram rail and 9 transport interchange hubs. Moreover, there will be several major business and innovation centers that will employ a total of over 1 million people. In other words, the new territories are becoming hotspots for both Russian and foreign investors. Many foreign investors have already joined the project.

In short, expanding Moscow’s borders prompted the development of the city and will eventually help turn it into a polycentric modern mega-city.

Sergo Kukhianidze

Editor in Chief

CAPITAL IDEASS T R A T E G I E S F O R B U S I N E S S I N M O S C O W

CAPITAL IDEASFounder: Department for External Economicand International Relations of the Government of MoscowAddress: Tverskaya, 13, Moscow, 125032.Ph: +7 (495) 633-68-66Fax: +7 (495) 633-68-65E-mail: [email protected] staff:Editor-in-chief – Sergo KukhianidzeProduction crew of the edition: Elena Egorova (deputy editor-in-chief), Tatyana Akimova, Gennady Charodeev, Vladimir Dolmatov, Evgeny Khokhlov, Sergei Levin, Marina Ogorodnikova, Anastassia Paloni, Dmitry Sokolov, Anna Tomkins

Publisher: Moscow Center for International CooperationCEO: Igor TkachAddress: 105005, 68/8, build.1, Baumanskaya str., Moscow, RussiaPhone: +7 (499) 267-46-56E-mail: [email protected]

General Partner: National Review LtdCEO – Sergei OposhnyanskiyPhone.: +7 (495) 784-69-71E-mail: [email protected] – Sergei Anikanov, Evgeny KhokhlovDesign – Robert SaifulinPhoto editor – Victoriya Oposhnyanskaya Page layout – Alexander SaifulinAssistant – Nadezhda RatanovaDistribution – "Trans-Media" LtdAcknowledgements to: PHOTO – www.mos.ru, www.dvms.mos.ru, ITAR TASS Agency, RIA-Novosti, Getty Images Russia, companies and organizations, represented in the issue.If you wish to get new issues of Capital Ideas, please, apply to: [email protected]

The magazine is registered with at the Federal Authority of Legislative Control in Mass Media and Cultural Heritage Protection. Media registration certificate ФС77-53716, issued April 26, 2013. All reproduction permitted only with the Editor’s permission and reference to ‘Capital Ideas’.

Distributed free of chargePublished with support from the Department for External Economicand International Relations of the Government of Moscow

Circulation : 7000

Signed into print 30. 11. 2016

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Moscow Official

NEWSEXPO REAL 2015: Moscow, the land of opportunityIn the beginning of October, Munich hosted the 18th International Trade Fair for Property and Investment. The Russian capital was represented at the fair by an exposition organized by the Moscow Department of Foreign Economic Activity and International Relations (DVMS).

Who is catching up with Europe?Сapital's business life was very fruitful in November: the conference for chairmen of foreign Chambers of Commerce and Trade was held, along with the business forum “Moscow-Israel 2015: Challenges, Decisions, Prospects.”

Tokyo is ready to invest in the Russian capitalMayor of Moscow Sergey Sobyanin and Governor of Tokyo Yoichi Masuzoe signed a memorandum of understanding and cooperation during a Moscow delegation business trip to Tokyo

Moscow Official

Unity of ideas – business success “Italy is one of Moscow’s key trade and economic partners,” said Mayor of Moscow Sergey Sobyanin during his opening address at the business forum “Unity of Ideas – Business Success: Russia and Italy,” which took place in the middle of October at the EXPO-2015 exhibition in Milan.

6–11

3CAPITAL IDEASJanuary-March 2016

Face to Face

New Moscow will be attractive to investors for a very long timeVladimir Zhidkin, the Head of the Department for the Development of New Territories of the City of Moscow answered our questions in an exclusive interview with Capital Ideas.

20–27

Consultations

Concessions for professionalsReceiving a Russian work permit for highly qualified foreign specialists has now become considerably simpler

36

Moscow Global

Going into business? Do it in Moscow!37

Moscow in words38–39

28-29

City’s graph

Key areas of integrated urban planning development of new territories

30–32

Moscow Global

From total chaos to smart orderThe capital recently hosted the 5th Annual Urban Forum: “Moscow as a Dynamic Megacity: flexible management practices.”

33–35

City’s graph

Creating places of employmentMoscow’s ranking

4 CAPITAL IDEAS January-March 2016

Moscow Global

I would not be a diplomat if I weren’t an optimistHannu Himanen, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Finland in Russia answers questions of Capital Ideas in an exclusive interview

40–43

Nothing Ventured

The crisis in Russia is a temporary phenomenonPhilippe Pegorier, the Chairman of the AEB Board, has been living in Russia for several decades. He speaks fluent Russian and truly understands the ins and outs of doing business in the country. In his interview with Capital Ideas, Mr. Pegorier talked about his life in Moscow and about how the AEB has dealt with the more challenging periods that have faced the Russian market.

56–58

Nothing Ventured

Smart lighting for smart citiesLight can be used for much more than decoration. “Architectural lighting is an important component of a city’s brand that can help attract investments and tourism,” says Natalia Neverskaya, Head of Government and Public Affairs, Corporate Communication, Philips Lighting, Russia and CIS.

48–51

44–47

Nothing Ventured

We’re here to stayCrisis, sanctions…seems like it’s a challenge to find anybody in business who is not, in one way or another, scared of these two words. Kai Reichert, the CEO of Fraikin Russia, is not easily spooked. “Starting a company during a crisis is an advantage,” Mr. Reichert said during an exclusive interview with Capital Ideas.

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Nothing Ventured

WIKA: business with German precisionOleg Goncharov is the General Director at WIKA MERA. He has been working in international business for over 25 years and has a clear understanding of how to set up and develop the business of an international corporation in Russia.

60–62

Our Interview

Obama envies Putin’s power“The sanctions against Moscow don’t have a time limit at all, in my opinion. They remind me of the Jackson-Vanik amendment,” said the legendary journalist Melor Sturua in an exclusive interview with Capital Ideas.

64–65

Moscow Vocabulary


Bookshelf

Making perfectTeri Lindeberg, founder and CEO of Staffwell, is a remarkable woman. She knows all ins and outs of doing business in Russia. At least she wrote a great book titled Making Perfect, that is about what employees want from their employers. Here’s the extract from the Teri’s book.

66–68

Life&leisure

Let's go!You don’t have to book a trip abroad to go skiing or snowboarding in the winter. There are a lot of places close to Moscow where you can not only hit the slopes, but also relax with your whole family. Capital Ideas has selected the best ski resorts near Moscow.

88–90

Neighbors

In spite of everything, mutual interest has not subsidedRiga successfully hosted Days of Moscow

72–75

Our interview

I’m learning LatvianAlexander Veshnyakov, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Russian Federation to Latvia sat down for the interview with Capital Ideas

76–77

69

Nothing Ventured

The way to investment is through the stomachThe Russian Capital Hosts Moroccan Festival

70–71

This and That

How did Anna Karenina meet count Vronsky?The average American will always respond to the question “How are you?” with “Great!” A Russian, on the other hand, will never give a one-word answer – a Russian will tell you, in detail, exactly how they are doing that day. Why?

78–81

Travel

The secrets behind the Kremlin starsThis year marks 80 years since the five-point stars replaced the two-headed eagles atop of the towers of the Moscow Kremlin. Today, these stars are among the most well-known symbols of the Russian capital. Few people know, however, the long story of how these stars ended up on the towers.

82–87

Life&Culture

Fatal attraction or tango nightsThe time before the New Year can be hectic, and we seldom have time to enjoy the beautiful things in life. This is a shame, because there are a lot of interesting events happening in Moscow at the end of December. Even after the holidays, the city’s cultural life continues to brim with life.

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Food&Drink

Cooking with soulWho said that the story of the famous Normandy-Neman Aviation Regiment is over? Today, it continues in the very center of Moscow. There’s just another turn in the plotline!

“Italy is one of Moscow’s key trade and economic partners,” said Mayor of Moscow Sergey Sobyanin during his opening address at the business forum “Unity of Ideas – Business Success: Russia and Italy,” which took place in the middle of October at the EXPO-2015 exhibition in Milan.

MILANO 2015


MOSCOW OFFICIAL

Unity of ideas – business success

and Russia. The purpose of the forum is to help create modern manufacturing enterprises, form expert groups in order to or-ganize cooperation in the spheres of logistics and technology, organize scientific and educational events, as well as attract private investments to priority projects.

Sergey Sobyanin visited the Russian pavilion at the internation-al exhibition, which was located front and center and was one of the most popular pavilions at the event.

“I am happy to see you at our forum. The Russian pavilion here at EXPO has been visited by millions of people. This speaks to the fact that there is a lot of mutual interest between our two countries,” the Mayor of Moscow pointed out. Over the past few years, Italy has consistently been one of Moscow’s top four partners in terms of trade volumes. Last year, trade turnover


Unity of ideas – business successThe event was attended by Minister of the Moscow Govern-ment and Head of Department for Foreign Economic Activity and International Relations (DVMS) Sergey Cheryomin, Am-bassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Russian Fed-eration in the Republic of Italy and the Republic of San Marino Sergei Razov, Head of the Department of Trade, Industry and Tourism of Milan Franco D’Alfonso, Chairman of the Board of Directors at General Invest Vincenzo Trani and other officials.

The forum was also attended by dozens of leading Italian con-struction, architecture, transportation and logistics companies, along with Russian and Italian universities. Professionals in the food industry, construction and urban planning, transport in-frastructure and information technology will discuss issues rel-evant to bilateral cooperation related to the development of business ties and direct contact between businessmen in Italy

MOSCOW OFFICIAL

tourists after the devaluation of the ruble,” Sergey Sobyanin said. There are also upsides in this for the production of goods, the cost of which has decreased compared to imported prod-ucts.

Forum participants also pointed out that business ties between the two countries continue to develop rapidly in spite of the sanction against Russia. “Crises come and go. This crisis, which has resulted in tensions between Russia and the West, will also pass. Meanwhile, national interests remain the same, as do the great traditions that were established through decades of mu-tually beneficial cooperation between Russia and Italy,” said Ambassador Sergey Razov.

“After the Days of Moscow were held in Rome and Milan, the whole year was defined by the slogan ‘Made with Italy,’ which reflects Moscow’s new approach to Italian investments and Italian business: emphasis is placed on the establishment of joint enterprises and technology transfer,” said head of the DVMS Sergey Cheryomin during his speech at the forum. “A great example of this is the launch of the Delimobil car sharing system in Moscow. The idea was first presented by the Italian side in May of last year at the Days of Moscow forum in Milan and implemented just one year later with support from Italian investors. Investment volumes will total 1 billion rubles before the end of 2015, which is about 20 million euros,” the minister said.

In the sphere of construction, one of the main projects that at-tracts Italian investments is the reconstruction of the Dinamo stadium, which is carried out in cooperation with VTB Bank and Codest – the project’s general contractor that implements complicated technical solutions in the erection of the multipur-pose recreational center in the city of Moscow.

amounted to almost $7.5 billion. In spite of the recent changes on the international political arena, Moscow continues to ef-ficiently cooperate with our Italian partners.

“Of course, this kind of active bilateral cooperation has pro-duced concrete results. Today, Moscow is open to investments across different sectors of the economy. As you know, our city has serious competitive advantages to offer. I will name just a few: high-quality, affordable manufacturing, office and retail spaces,” the Mayor of Moscow said. He specified that Moscow has been in the leading position in Europe in terms of new real estate volumes, especially when it comes to new office and manufacturing spaces. The Russian capital also doesn’t suffer from a lack of quality manufacturing, office and retail spaces that are actively used by Italian companies.

“There are a lot of qualified professionals in Moscow and labor does not cost as much. About a million students study at uni-versities and colleges in the city – the best educational institu-tions in the country. Access to a big retail market is also impor-tant. The population of Moscow is 12 million people. Plus, there are 25 million people in the metropolitan area and 40 million people in the Central Federal District,” Sergey Sobyanin said. There is an opportunity to implement major development proj-ects in Moscow. The capital introduces about 9 million square meters of new real estate annually.

“Of course, tourism has always been a major sphere of coop-eration for us. The majority of Russians who have been abroad have visited Italy, have gone to Rome and Milan. A lot of Italians come to Moscow every year. The number of tourists in Moscow exceeded 16 million people last year, and I think this number will continue to increase because of domestic tourism, and also because hotels and services have become more affordable for


The forum also hosted the conference entitled “Potential of the ‘Made with ITALY’ Italian-Russian cooperation,” which was dedicated to cooperation between Moscow and Milan in the economic sphere. The participants discussed how attractive Moscow is for Italian investors and talked about prospects for further bilateral cooperation.

Discussion participants included the VP of the Moscow Cham-ber of Commerce Suren Vardanyan, Minister of the Moscow Government and Director of the Moscow Department for Eco-

nomic Policy and Development Maksim Reshetnikov, Minister and Director of the Department of Trade and Services Alexei Nemeryuk, Head of the Moscow Department of Science, Indus-trial Policy and Entrepreneurship Oleg Bocharov and Chief Ar-chitect of the City of Moscow Sergey Kuznetsov.

A discussion of the key aspects of cooperation in the sphere of innovation took place as well. Topics included developments in the biomedical sphere, medical equipment, energy efficient and IT technologies, as well as residential and road construction.


MOSCOW OFFICIAL


mous Province of Trento Trentino Sviluppo, Democenter-Sipe Foundation, and Doxy.

Moreover, Bauman Moscow State technical University signed a tripartite agreement on the development of technological in-novation with the Italian University of Genoa.

One of the most important events during EXPO 2015 was the mayor summit that was organized by the Municipality of Milan. The summit took place on October 15-16 at the Royal Palace of Milan (Palazzo Reale). The summit was attended by heads of foreign cities, international organizations, experts, analysts and representatives from leading international media outlets.

A food policy pact between international capitals and major cit-ies was also signed during the forum.

Mayor of Moscow Sergey Sobyanin took part in the mayor summit. “The issues we are considering today are extremely important, and they are important to our city as well. Moscow is a major consumer of food. We sell 12 million tons of food in our city annually. Several major and thousands of small enter-prises that supply the city with the products we need operate in Moscow,” the mayor pointed out.

He brought up the fact that Moscow is not an agricultural re-gion, so products have to be purchased in other Russian regions or abroad. Proper food supply is an important component of life in the capital, much like it is for any other mega-city.

“Not a single big city can afford to depend on one or few supply channels. This is especially true when it comes to imports. City authorities need to be in charge of information and geographi-

The event was attended by representatives from the Moscow Higher School of Economics, the Moscow Institute of Physics and technology, the Moscow State University of Design and technology, as well as Moscow’s leading technoparks.

A number of agreements between Moscow technoparks and Italian manufacturing companies, as well as contracts between leading research centers, were signed at the forum. One such agreement was a protocol on cooperation between ICE (Ital-ian Trade Promotion Agency) and the Moscow Department of Science, Industrial Policy and Entrepreneurship. The document was signed by head of the Department Oleg Bocharov and president of ICE Riccardo M. Monti.

The agreement to place manufacturing equipment of an Italian company at the All-Russian Design and Research Institute of Metallurgical Machine-Building named after A.I.Tselikov (VNI-IMETMASH) was signed by General Director of VNIIMETMASH Alexander Pirozhenko and his colleague from BonettiCostruzi-oniMeccaniche S. r. l. Mario A. Bonetti.

Moreover, an agreement between a resident company of Stro-gino technopark and the Italian company Frastema S. R. L. was signed. According to the document, a medical equipment man-ufacturing enterprise is to be opened in Moscow. The agree-ment was signed by the CEO of R-Optics Andrei Yakovlev and President of Frastema S. r. l. Stefano Sonnino. An agreement on cooperation between Strogino technopark and ComoNext research and technology park was signed as well.

Within the framework of cooperation between Moscow tech-noparks and foreign partners, Stroyexprom signed agreements with a number of Italian companies: Agency of the Autono-

Mayor of Moscow Sergey Sobyanin and Mayor of Milan Giuliano Pisapia.

Mayor of Moscow Sergey Sobyanin and Mayor of Astana Adilbek Zhaksybekov.


cal distribution of food supply. If need be, we need to help busi-nesses find new suppliers,” Sergey Sobyanin said.

Over the past three years, the share of imports on the Moscow market has dropped by almost a third. City authorities pay spe-cial attention to the establishment of a special infrastructure for the food products market.

“A good example of this is that the Government of Moscow re-cently initiated the establishment of a major logistics center FOOD CITY, with capacity of about 700,000 tons of food products per year. Just one year after opening, the food center is carrying out the distribution of food products supplied to Moscow from 52 re-gions in Russia and 26 foreign countries,” the mayor added.

Several more centers like this are to be established in the capital in the near future. As Sergey Sobyanin pointed out, city authori-ties support the development of all retail formats – from big chains to small outlets. This is why over 100 weekend fairs in residential areas in Moscow are held on a regular basis. No less than 50% of stands at these fairs are occupied by farmers and gardeners.

“The Moscow Government agrees with the approaches to en-suring food safety that are outlines in the city policy pact on food product supplies. We all have to make an effort to make sure our city residents have access to healthy and high-quality food products regardless of income level,” the Mayor of Mos-cow stressed. ■

MILANO 2015FEEDING THE PLANETENERGY FOR LIFE

Moscow presented relevant investment projects in the sphere of territorial expan-sion and infrastructure solutions, primar-ily related to transportation development, urban space development, architectural

innovations and the improvement of urban environ-ment and standard of living for residents.

The international exhibition Expo Real has been held in Munich every year since 1998. The exhibition brings together high-ranking government officials, repre-sentatives from construction companies, architec-tural bureaus and banks, as well as developers, inves-tors, experts and specialists from all over the world.

In the beginning of October, Munich hosted the 18th International Trade Fair for Property and Investment. The Russian capital was represented at the fair by an exposition organized by the Moscow Department of Foreign Economic Activity and International Relations (DVMS).

MOSCOW OFFICIAL

EXPO REAL 2015: Moscow, the land of opportunity

The exhibition is one of the largest investment forums in the world and contributes to the establishment of international cooperation in this field.

The Moscow Delegation was headed by Deputy Mayor for Urban Development and Construction of Moscow Marat Khusnullin. The delegation included Minister of the Moscow Government and Head of Department for Foreign Economic Activity and In-ternational Relations (DVMS) Sergey Cheryomin, Minister of the Moscow Government and Head of the Department of City property Vladimir Efimov, Head of the Moscow Department of Science, In-dustrial Policy and Entrepreneurship Oleg Bocharov, Deputy Chairman of the Moscow City Duma Andrey Metelsky and other officials.

The opening ceremony was attended by the Minister of Construction Industry, Housing and Utilities Sector Mikhail Men, Deputy Mayor for Urban Development and Construction of Moscow Marat Khusnullin, Head of DVMS Sergey Cheryomin, Russia's Consul General in Munich Sergey Ganzha, Head of Bavarian Chamber of Commerce and Industry Eberhardt Sasse and Rus-sian business representatives.

Mikhail Men gave the opening address, in which he talked about expanding the partnership between Russia and Germany in the construction sector: “More and more German companies are doing business in Russia. A Horsch Maschinenbau man-ufacturing center was recently opened in Lipetsk Oblast, for example. Horsch’s investment volumes in Russia have reached €15 million. The Bavarian

company Knauf is also actively operating on our market, and the launch of a Wolf System prefabri-cated housing line is to take place in Omsk Oblast in the near future.”

Marat Khusnullin talked about the latest develop-ments in the construction sector in Moscow: “Over the past five years, over 40 million square meters of real estate have been build in Moscow, and over $20 billion has been invested in transport infrastructure. Our Bavarian colleagues account for a good chunk of these investments. We have developed a good rela-tionship over the past 18 years and we are ready to continue to support and develop this partnership.”

As part of the EXPO REAL 2015 business program, the stand organized by the Moscow Department of For-eign Economic Activity and International Relations hosted a number of events.

Participants of the briefing meeting entitled “Cur-rent Investment Opportunities in Russia” discussed the topic of cooperation and shared their experiences of working with foreign investors. The event was at-tended by the Commissioner for the Protection of the Rights of Entrepreneurs in the city of Moscow Mikhail Vyshegorodtsev and regional managing director for Europe, Russia and the CIS Maarten Vermeulen.

During his speech at the briefing, Deputy Manager at the Department of Foreign Trade and International Re-lations Anatoly Valetov pointed out that the Moscow government is interested in attracting new investors as well as support those who already work in the capital.


Note from Capital Ideas:

Moscow’s exposition at EXPO REAL 2015 in Munich presented the accomplishments and plans of the Russian capital in the sphere of construction. Over 40 million square meters of real estate have been erected in Moscow over the past five years.

The Moscow stand consisted of a 209 square meter exposi-tion, which included a special zone for holding conferences, round tables and seminars.

The Moscow exposition included relevant investment projects implemented in Moscow by government and commercial or-ganizations. These are projects that contribute to improving the standard of living for the general population and preserv-ing the city’s cultural heritage, including the project on the de-velopment of coastal areas around the Moscow River as well as the establishment of a campus for students of the Moscow State University of Mechanical Engineering.

Sergey Cheryomin visited the Dusseldorf stand, where he held talks with Lord Mayor Thomas Geisel.

MOSCOW OFFICIAL

“We don’t separate investors in Russians and foreigners; they have equal rights. Just recently we adopted a new law at the federal level that allows us to quickly regulate relations between city, federal and municipal organiza-tions and private investors,” Anatoly Valetov noted.

During the round table discussion entitled “Clusters: new approach to developing territories,” Head of the Moscow Department of Science, Industrial Policy and Entrepreneurship Oleg Bocharov said that no Euro-pean country currently generates the type of income produced by Moscow real estate. This is why all of the main investors are concentrated in two capitals. “Today, Moscow assumes virtually all of the risks that may arise because of political conflicts or economic conditions or, for example, because electricity prices have gone up. In my opinion, this a great example of real support for investors,” Oleg Bocharov said.

The Moscow stand also hosted the round table “Trans-port Infrastructure in Moscow: potential for develop-ment.” Minister of the Moscow Government and Head of the Department of City property Vladimir Efimov was the main speaker at this event. “Transport inter-change hub projects in Moscow can be revised to suit the interests of investors after they are officially ap-proved,” he said, “If necessary, if the facility needs to be used for a different purpose, we are ready to consider the proposal with the planning and land commission in order to make sure that every project is of interest to

investors and is implemented in a timely fashion,” the department head said. Investors have a total of over 170 transport interchange hubs to choose from.

Round table participants talked about the procedure for granting land under a concession agreement for the development of road transport infrastructure in Moscow, issues of state support, mechanisms for at-tracting extra-budgetary sources of financing, tech-nological innovation, as well as international experi-ence in the development of transportation hubs.

Minister of the Moscow Government and Head of Department for Foreign Economic Activity and In-ternational Relations Sergey Cheryomin and Liepzig’s Mayor for Economic and Labour Affairs Uwe Albrecht discussed the development of bilateral cooperation, expansion of direct business contacts and exchange of experience in the sphere of attracting foreign in-novations and investments at the Moscow govern-ment’s stand.

Sergey Cheryomin also visited Dusseldorf’s stand, where he held talks with the Mayor of Dusseldorf Thomas Geisel. The two sides discussed ways to de-velop partnerships between Moscow and Dusseldorf across the spheres of education, healthcare, social policy, development of city infrastructure, culture and sports, as well as the implementation of a bilateral co-operation program. ■


In terms of the capital's business life, November was probably the most fruitful month for Moscow: the conference for chairmen of foreign Chambers of Commerce and Trade was held, along with the business forum “Moscow-Israel 2015: Challenges, Decisions, Prospects.”

The main objective of these events is to intro-duce representatives of Western and Eastern business communities with current invest-ment projects in Moscow, as well as with new preferential terms available to those

who do business in the Russian capital.

“In spite of certain economic challenges that are re-lated to the crisis, the capital of Russia continues to develop rapidly. We remain one of the most attrac-tive mega-cities in the world for investors,” said Min-ister of the Moscow Government Sergey Cheryomin.

According to Association of European Business CEO Frank Schauff, who participated in the Moscow con-ference for chairmen of Foreign Chambers of Com-merce and Trade, there are thousands of European companies operating in the Russian capital. Suffice it to say that the city’s top trading partners include Germany, Italy, France, Great Britain and Switzerland. India and Israel are not far behind.

Alexis Rodzianko, President of the American Chamber of Commerce in Russia, confirmed the statements made by his European colleague. In an interview with Capital Ide-as, the businessman said that not a single major US com-pany has exited Moscow – all continue to participate actively in the Russian market. Businessmen who have been working in Russia for 20-30 years have a particu-larly thorough understanding of the situation at hand.

“We have companies in Moscow that have been working here since before the collapse of the USSR, and even prior to that,” Rodzianko said, “Recently, for example, I attended Caterpillar’s celebration of their 100th anniversary on the Russian market. The Ameri-can company has been here since the times of Tsar Nicholas II, and continues to do well in Putin’s time. They aren’t complaining – they’re flourishing.”

Who is catching up with Europe?

The fact that Israeli business also seeks to expand its presence in the Moscow region was highlighted dur-ing the Moscow-Israeli forum. “We have every reason to believe that we will be able to significantly increase our trade turnover volumes with the Russian capital in 2016,” said Zvi Heifetz, the new Israeli ambassador to Russia told Capital Ideas.

Sergey Cheryomin talked about current investment op-portunities in Russia at both forums. According to the Minister, the city will require a lot of work – from the construction of roads and transport interchange hubs to the development of new public spaces. Cheryomin also talked about other projects that may be interesting to investors: the development of Moscow River embank-ments, the reconstruction of parks, and the establish-ment of sports and recreation infrastructure.

The Minister also said the decision to establish a med-ical cluster in the city with the assistance of foreign experts has already been made. Cheryomin invited Israeli companies to participate in this project and es-tablish local manufacturing in Moscow.

Round tables continued the work of the economic forum. They were attended by politicians, environ-mental scientists and representatives of the Israeli business community. Solomon Mikhailov presented Hotelo and GoTechVision projects on power conser-vation in the tourism sector.

The Moscow Department of Foreign Economic Activ-ity and International Relations (DVMS) was the or-ganizer for both forums. ■

Minister of the Moscow Government Sergey Cheryomin, Head of the Israeli Trade and Economic Mission Mark Kaner and the Israeli Ambassador to Russia Zvi Heifetz.

Mayor of Moscow Sergey Sobyanin and Governor of Tokyo Yoichi Masuzoe signed a memorandum of understanding and cooperation during a Moscow delegation business trip to Tokyo

“You have to live here for a minimum of ten years in order to see the most interesting places in Tokyo and try all of the world-famous Japanese dishes” – these are the words that kick off just about every Japanese tourist guidebook. This October, Mayor of Moscow Sergey Sobyanin and the Moscow Government del-egation condensed this tour into just two short days.

During their time in the Land of the Rising Sun, Sergey Sobyanin and members of the Moscow delegation did a lot more than hold a series of official talks and meet with heads of big business in informal settings. They also actively participated in a business forum, visited

MOSCOW OFFICIAL

Tokyo is ready to invest in the Russian capital

Governor Masuzoe assured mayor Sobyanin that the Japanese are ready to uphold friendly relations and cooperation.

the Tokyo Traffic Control Center and toured the fa-mous Hamarikyu Gardens. The mayor himself even got a chance to participate in a traditional tea drink-ing ceremony.

Tokyo has the world’s largest metro economy. If this mega-city were a separate state, it would place 15th in terms of GDP – ahead of Australia, Turkey, Pakistan and Indonesia. The city is located on an area of 2,188.67 square kilometers and houses between 14 and 22 mil-lion people (depending on which source you use).

Tokyo is a paradoxical combination of congestion and diversity, of chaos and overcrowding. There is a sea of building huddled closely together like furniture that has been shoved into the corner of the room and left there for a long period of time. When the streetlight turns green, there are so many people trying to cross the street that they run into each other, especially during lunchtime. The locals sometimes joke that even dogs are forced to wag their tails up and down, instead of side-to-side, because of how crowded the city is.

All big cities have issues with traffic jams, and Moscow is no exception. Governor Yoichi Masuzoe’s advisors must have informed him of Moscow’s traffic manage-ment problems before Sergey Sobyanin’s visit – how else does one explain the fact that the governor men-tioned the two cities face similar challenges during the visit? “It is my understanding that Moscow is in-terested in resolving the issue of traffic jams. We are well familiar with this problem. We are ready to share our secrets in order to help you tame this dragon,” To-kyo’s governor said to Sergey Sobyanin during their meeting. He also invited members of the Moscow del-egation to visit the Tokyo Traffic Control Center.

In general, in spite of the absence of a peace treaty between Russia and Japan, relations between the two

capitals of our countries have been marked by solid business relations over the past ten years. Suffice it to say that there are over 360 Japanese corporations operating in Moscow. As a result of their cooperation with Russian companies, turnover for these enterprises amounts to no less than $7 billion annually. In reference to this figure, Governor Masuzoe said that he is “ready for the development of friendly relations and mutually beneficial cooperation with the Russian capital.”

The guests from Moscow enjoyed the warm reception that was organized for them by employees of the Traf-fic Control Center, which is administered by the Metro-politan Police Department. The Japanese managed to convince the guests that the city authorities achieved significant results in reducing traffic jams. This was ac-complished with the help of a unique computer sys-tem that allows the authorities to monitor road traffic in real time, displaying it on a huge 4.5mX24m screen. “This is like the set up we have in the air traffic control center,” one member of the delegation noted.

“We were presented with interesting figures: in 95% of cases, Tokyo residents opt for public transportation for their commute to work. The city was able to ac-complish this over a period of 20-30 years. But we have to act much faster in Moscow,” said Maksim Liksutov, Deputy Mayor of Moscow and Head of the Depart-ment of Transport and Road Infrastructure Develop-ment of the City of Moscow, explained to Capital Ideas.

He also noted that Moscow utilizes more advanced technologies for collecting and analyzing traffic con-gestion data. Mr. Liksutov pointed out that the traffic load on the roads in Tokyo amounts to just 70%-80% of that in Moscow.

“Whatever the case may be, there are less traffic jams in Tokyo. The Japanese accomplished this by


There aren't many cars on the roads in Tokyo early in the morning - residents prefer to take the metro to work.

The crest of Tokyo represents the sun radiating energy in six directions.

developing the commuter railway system, the metro and fairly strict regulations for car ownership,” the Deputy Mayor of Moscow said.

According to Mr. Liksutov, the cost of parking in To-kyo is higher than it is in Moscow. The Japanese also have another strict regulation: you can’t register a car in your name if you don’t also own or rent a parking space near your house.

“These are very strict regulations. But I want to point out that this doesn’t mean we should immediately implement Japanese regulations back home in Mos-cow. We think that the development of parking zones is a good enough measure in terms of regulating the number of vehicles on the roads,” the Head of the Transport Department noted.

The international seminar that addressed the issues of innovative development of city infrastructure in the sphere of social welfare and the creation of a barrier-free environment did not go unnoticed. Sem-inar participants discussed how to make the modern mega-city more comfortable and safe so that people with disabilities could visit the movie theatre, go to stores or take the metro as a full-fledged member of society.

Sergey Sobyanin’s visit to Tokyo ended with a busi-ness breakfast with Japanese big business repre-sentatives at the New Otani Hotel. The meeting was attended by Sergey Cheryomin, Minister of the Moscow City Government and Head of the Depart-ment for External Economic and International Rela-tions (DVMS).

As it turned out, in spite of the tensions between the government of Russia and Japan, Japanese corpora-tions are still interested in financing construction

projects in the Russian capital. The construction of new metro stations has become one of the most at-tractive projects in this regard. The Moscow Govern-ment plans to set up at least 169 new transportation hubs and plans to use the experience accumulated by our Japanese partners.

“Ensuring that foreign investments are protected by the authorities has rekindled the interest of foreign partners in investing in Russia and Moscow,” Sergey Sobyanin said during his presentation.

Specific examples of successful collaborations be-tween businessmen from Moscow and Japan were brought up during the meeting. Such examples in-clude IHI Corporation, which is the main supplier for the Renault-Nissan plant in Moscow. Company rep-resentatives declared that they will continue to take and interest in the Russian market and are ready to localize production based on the automotive cluster. In spite of the ruble collapse, company management

MOSCOW OFFICIAL

"There is a lot of potential in coop-eration between Moscow and Tokyo, and not all opportunities have been tapped yet," says Russia's Am-bassador to Japan Yevgeny Afanasyev (center).

considers business in Russia to be profitable and their investments to be justified.

So what does Moscow have to offer to the Japanese?

Sergey Cheryomin answered this question before his departure for Tokyo, noting that the Moscow govern-ment has a lot to offer the Japanese. For example, there are a lot of interesting developments in the sphere of transportation management. After all, our city uses an intelligent transport management system as well.

“Moscow has made a lot of advancements when it comes to creating a smart city system. This is especially true in the sphere of interacting with citizens through our city portals via the Internet,” the Minister explained.

Sergey Cheryomin was, of course, talking about the “Active Citizen” project, which was launched in May 2014. With the help of this portal, the Moscow government regularly conducts polls among city

residents. Every week, new issues about the city are discussed at various levels of city management (departments, prefectures, municipal councils). By answering these questions, Muscovites can directly influence the decisions made by the Moscow gov-ernment. Millions of users, over 580 polls and 250 decisions implemented by the authorities – these are the results of the first year of operation for “Ac-tive Citizen.”

“All of this can successfully be adopted by the Japa-nese,” the Minister of the Moscow Government says.

“I didn’t notice that anybody have a pessimistic opin-ion about Russia during our meeting with the top managers of Japanese corporations. On the contrary, they were interested in learning about new opportu-nities available to them in the Russian capital. Many people promised Sergey Sobyanin they would visit Moscow soon to see everything for themselves,” the head of the DVMS said. ■


People say that Governor Masuzoe has conquered the biggest dragon - transportation jams in Tokyo.

FACE TO FACE


The head of the Department for the Development of New Territories of the City of Moscow answered our questions in an exclusive interview with Capital Ideas.

Vladimir Zhidkin genuinely describes his job as “extremely interesting work.” This isn’t surprising: after all, he is the person in charge of developing New Moscow – a 150,000 hectare area that was added to the Russian capital three years ago.

Vladimir Zhidkin:

New Moscowwill be attractive

to investors for a verylong time


Mr. Zhidkin, what was the main idea behind this mas-sive expansion of Moscow, and why was it necessary?

In short, it was done in order to open up new develop-ment opportunities for the city. Among other things, the new territories can be used to house major tech-noparks, technopolises, various centers of business activity, modern transportation, utilities and social infrastructure and create new places of employment. The last point is especially important, as it will serve to reverse the current migration pattern in the city – when millions of people travel to the center in the mornings and back from the center in the evenings. The creation of new jobs in the territories – over a million new jobs in the long-term – will help reduce transportation loads in Moscow.

In other words, Moscow – Old Moscow, to be exact – is suffocating from having to support a popula-tion of 12 million people, from major transportation problems…

Why? Old Moscow is a vibrant, developing organism that is resolving its own problems. The city is brim-

ming with life as well: industrial zones and tech-noparks are being erected, new roads and metro stations are under construction… But, for a num-ber of reasons, possibilities are limited in the center. By adding new territories to Old Moscow, we have opened up new opportunities for growth in the city. The fact that Moscow was expanding in the south-western direction is no accident. There is less infra-structure in this area – a lot more space and a lot more green areas. There are real forests there! In terms of total area, New Moscow is 1.5 times bigger than of Moscow, but only 240,000 people were liv-ing there at the time the area was first integrated – this is 50 times less than the population of Moscow. This gives you an idea of how much there is to do: for the majority of projects, we are starting from scratch.

Is it fair to say that the development of New Mos-cow is a priority for city authorities today?

No, both Old Moscow and New Moscow are being developed – there is a balance. There is no conflict between these two areas.

FACE TO FACE


Maybe we should be putting this question off until the end, but I’ll ask now: is there a possibility that Moscow will expand even further?

Maybe, though this is unlikely to be the case at this point. At least I don’t see any reasons to expand fur-ther in any direction in the near future.

Will New Moscow be better and more comfortable than the old part of the city?

That’s not a good way to look at it, because overall this isn’t true. In terms of relaxation, yes, New Moscow will be better – there is more space, more available land, and there are a lot of forests in the area. Imagine liv-ing in a house next to a forest elk, with a river nearby, instead of a park. At the same time, your home is also less expensive than it would be in Old Moscow.

Are cheaper real estate prices in New Moscow al-ready attracting people?

Of course. Over the past three years, the population of New Moscow has increased by a third – there

are 324,000 people living there now. I also can’t help but mention another figure: about 80,000 new jobs have been created in New Moscow over this time period. You know, when people I talk to find out what we’re doing in New Moscow, they of-ten exclaim: “Wow! We want to go there!”. Living so close to your place of employment is something that Old Moscow can’t afford right now. We are al-ready thinking about how to do this and are build-ing office spaces. As we create a modern European urban environment for residents, it is important that we also preserve the unique green environ-ment of New Moscow.

In spite of all these ambitious projects, I want to point out that we are not competing with Old Mos-cow. In the three years that I’ve been head of the Department for the Development of New Territo-ries, I’ve never thought, “our city needs to be bet-ter than Old Moscow.” After all, Old Moscow has a lot of things that these new areas will never have – world-class theatres and museums, as well as the Moscow River embankment that will soon change completely.


Tourists, including those who come from abroad, come to Moscow specifically because of these theatres and museums. Does this mean that New Moscow will not be of any interest at all to tourists?

Why not? Firstly, there are several historic estates in New Moscow – Ostafyevo Estate and Valuev Estate, for example. Second, we definitely plan on building exhibition centers and theme parks such as the Park for Reenactments of Historical Events or the Park of Russian Fairytales. There is a great example of this – Disneyland, which is located outside of Paris and hosts tons of guests from all over the world every day. Why not make something similar?

All of this will be outlined in New Moscow’s gen-eral plan?

Of course.

By the way, why has the plan not been confirmed yet?

Because there is no single general plan for New Mos-cow yet. So far, only some settlements located on these new territories have a plan. A comprehensive general plan should be confirmed by the Moscow Government by July 1, 2016, after public hearings take place in February of next year. The General Plan will be drafted for the period up to 2035.

Does this mean that New Moscow will be a super modernized city by 2035?

Not necessarily. Unfortunately, we don’t know what the political, economic and investment cli-mate in Russia will be like in the future…perhaps the plan will have to be adjusted over time. This isn’t a big deal – it’s something that happens in ev-ery country. It is perfectly logical to adjust a plan that outlines the next two decades in accordance with specific situations, new global urban develop-ment trends and so on. The important thing is that the general plan will lay the important groundwork for roads, utilities infrastructure, housing, social fa-cilities…

Ok. Of course, it is impossible to predict the fu-ture. Events unfold quickly, and nobody can say for sure what will happen tomorrow. But would you characterize the current economic climate as unfavorable?

It was a favorable situation until the fall of 2014. I mean, it was more favorable than it is today. There were a lot of investment opportunities last year and the year before last, money was cheaper, it was easier for an investor to get credit. Demand for commercial, office real estate, as well as housing, was higher. Today, the purchasing power for both business and the general population has dropped significantly. This isn’t a secret. I also want to point out that we are going to complete the 2015 plan for commissioning real estate – housing, social facili-ties.

Are you planning to attract foreign investors to various New Moscow projects?

Foreign investors are already working in new ter-ritories. We have French people, Czechs…unfortu-nately, there isn’t as much representation as we would like, so we definitely plan on attracting more foreign investors. We are completely open to hear-ing interesting proposals from foreign investors. We also understand that, given the current situation, foreign business will not be that active. But New Moscow is not a one-year project. We are sure that

FACE TO FACE


it will be attractive for both Russian and foreign in-vestors for a very long time.

Regardless of the current economic situation, New Moscow remains one of the most ambitious urban development projects in the world. There are also some other projects in the works – Greater London, New Delhi, Greater Paris…

The last one was never implemented, by the way.

Why not?

Although it was planned six or seven years or go, the project hasn’t made it past diagrams and sketches. I’m not sure exactly why this is, but I suppose there are problems with financing…

I’m curious about how you’re incorporating foreign experience into the New Moscow project. Deputy Mayor Marat Khusnullin talked about Tokyo…

He was talking about modern transport inter-change hubs and various road intersections in To-

kyo that look like they’ve come out of a science fic-tion movie. Of course, we are trying to use all of the interesting foreign developments that we can implement at home. I like European approaches to urban planning, for example. This means, firstly, in-fill housing – when courtyards are free of vehicles and are comfortable for residents. Take any city in Europe – Cologne, for example. There are plenty of streets with crowds of people, where there are both housing and public spaces. These aren’t necessar-ily exclusively pedestrian streets, but they are lively streets. There are a lot of people going to cafes, res-taurants, cultural attractions or social spaces. We have to create centers like this in order to ensure that New Moscow doesn’t turn into a commuter town flooded with parked cars, where children are confined to tiny playgrounds. I will say that all of the projects we are currently developing are based on this approach – creating a comfortable public space. This is how we see New Moscow.

As the head of the Department for the Develop-ment of New Territories, what is your primary fo-cus today?

FACE TO FACE


Everything. See, you can’t focus all of your attention on just one thing. New Moscow is a multifaceted project, so we have to think about multiple aspects at the same time when implementing it: transport infrastructure, construction, energy, gas and wa-ter supply. If we don’t approach it this way, we risk missing something crucial. But, so far as priorities go, we have just one – to do everything possible to make sure the people in New Moscow have a comfortable space for living and working. This is our guiding principle that dictates everything we do. This is why we are following the infill housing model, creating a suitable public space, places of employment nearby… constructing roads in a way that ensures they don’t run past areas that contain summer homes. We are building houses that will be a joy to look at, both inside and out, making sure buildings aren’t so tall that they end up hiding the scenery. We have a special committee that exam-ines every house, every kindergarten, every building in order to determine whether or not it’s comfort-able for people. I’ll repeat – this is the most impor-tant thing and is also the main reason we decided to expand Moscow’s borders three years ago. ■


CITY’S GRAPH Key areas of integrated urban planning development of new territories in Moscow

2

1

3

4

5

67

8

9

1011

12

M o s c o w

Minskoye Highway

Kievskoe Highway

Kaluz

hskoe

Highway

M2 H

ighwa

yKursk

oe su

burb

an di

recti

on of

Mos

cow

Railw

ay

MKAD

CRR

Kiyevsk

y sub

urban

direct

ion of

Mosc

ow Railw

ay

Plans include the construction of no more than 100 million m2 of real estate with preferential placement of various places of employment that will attract residents of nearby areas and those who live in the center as well in order to lower labor migration into the city.


Three zones are planned for the new territories:

First zone – partially urbanized area with a high concentration of administrative and business real estate (no more than 10,000 m2/ha in density)

Second zone – low degree of urbanization, institutions for healthcare and education (no more than 7,000 m2/ha in density)

Third zone – recreational area with low-rise residential buildings(no more than 5,000 m2/ha in density)

Planned clusters (growth points)

1 Multi-purpose administrative and business cluster

2 Aeropolis Vnukovo

3 Rumyantsevo Technopark

4 Mosrentgen multifunctional cluster (shopping, hotels, offices, manufacturing)

5 Education cluster

6 Historical and recreational center

7 Troitsk Innovative Research Center

8 Medical cluster

9 Kievsky logistics cluster

10 Klenovo agro-industrial cluster

11 Voronovo cluster

12 Rogovo agricultural district

System of park areas and mega-parks in Moscow

Planned roads

Existing roads

Key areas of integrated urban planning development of new territories in Moscow

1


In a special report, Sergey Sobyanin summed up his team’s accomplishments over the past five years and talked about how city programs that are important to the capital are implemented – programs such as the development of new territories, the expansion of the transportation system and

the reduction in traffic loads, the development of public spaces and the implementation of new housing quality standards.

According to the mayor, the city government has accomplished a lot over the past five years. The city is developing at a rapid pace and is among the world’s leaders in this respect – it took Moscow just a few years to implement what many European cities took decades to achieve. Moscow used solutions that worked well for other cities. “We have accomplished a lot over the five years,” the mayor said, “We’ve practically done the impossible. As everybody knows, it is important to know history so that we don’t repeat past mistakes. Unfortunately, Moscow made the same mistakes many cities made when it first started developing in 1991.”

Millions of square miles of new real estate and cars appeared in a short period of time, which led to the collapse of the trans-portation, deterioration of public spaces and an increase in dis-comfort in everyday life.

MOSCOW GLOBAL

The capital recently hosted the 5th Annual Urban Forum: “Moscow as a Dynamic Megacity: flexible management practices.”


From total chaos to smart order2015 marked the 5-year jubilee for both the forum and Sergey Sobyanin taking office as the Mayor of Moscow. Because of this, the forum’s agenda was dedicated to the experience Moscow acquired in urban development over the course of these five years, the specifics of application and implementation of best international practices in the capital, as well as to new projects planned for implementation.

“The main conclusions we can draw at the end of these five years may come off as trivial. Nonetheless, they are very im-portant – these are not just words. They refer to real changes that transformed the lives of millions of people,” Sergey Sobya-nin added.

Solutions that had already been tested were used to address one of the most important problems in the capital – the trans-portation problem. The battle with chaos on the roads and creating top-notch conditions for public transportation was a revolutionary solution for Moscow.

“This is how human psychology works: everybody supports cleaning up the city in theory, but in practice many cannot re-sist the urge to park where they are not supposed to or to drive around traffic in order to save a minute or two. This is why the first rule of having a successful transportation program is be-ing strict with administrative rules. Towing cars that are parked where they are not supposed to be or traffic light cameras don’t make the city authorities particularly popular,” Sobyanin said,

“But if you’re not ready to follow through with these measures, don’t attempt to resolve the transportation problem.”

Today, the city is implementing one of the largest transport in-frastructure development programs in the world. The pace of metro construction doubled, while the pace of road construc-tion increased by 150%. The construction of new railway routes has also been resumed. “This was our first experience in the past 30 – 40 years. The first express trains recently started running to and from locations with the heaviest traffic loads – Khimkhi and Zelenograd. This is very important for Moscow, since a significant number of cars – millions of cars, really – travel from towns out-side of Moscow into the city every day,” the mayor said.

This comprehensive solution to transportation problems had a positive effect. However, the next three years will be extremely important for the transportation program. For example, Mos-cow Ring Railway will start operations in 2016. This means that Moscow will have a second interchange circuit for the metro and the first interchange circuit for commuter trains.

“Over 30 metro stations are currently under construction, con-tracts have been signed to renew the rolling stock for the metro and above-ground transport is supposed to transfer to a new passenger transportation model. Of course, we will also contin-ue the construction of the main commuter routes,” the capital’s mayor said. The reconstruction of roads and interchanges on MKAD is also nearing completion. All of these changes will help create a quality transportation system.

The next important task the city authorities have to accomplish is the revival of public spaces in Moscow. “The deterioration we observed for the past 10-15 years goes way beyond physical symptoms such as bad patches of asphalt, dead trees and bro-ken benches. Allocating the funds to restore these things is not necessarily the most difficult task. The most dangerous trend of the past few decades has been the privatization of public spaces in Moscow,” Sergey Sobyanin declared.

The work to create a comfortable city began with the obvious. The sidewalks and playgrounds were cleared of illegal parking spaces, illegal advertising was taken down from building fa-cades and street vendors were cleaned up. At the same time, the authorities worked on the comprehensive development of yards and parks.


From total chaos to smart order

MOSCOW GLOBAL


tion. Judging by the trend we’re seeing today, at least, this is an attainable goal,” the mayor of Moscow said. He also talked about the Milan model of car sharing – a short-term car rental system.

A panel discussion entitled “Drivers of Development for a Poly-centric City Model,” which included Deputy Mayor for Urban Development and Construction of Moscow Marat Khusnullin, took place as part of the Urban Forum. In his address, Mr. Khus-nullin named the comprehensive development of transport infrastructure and the construction of transport interchange hubs as the key drivers for the development of a polycentric city model. “By developing New Moscow, executing renovations of industrial zones and developing the areas around Moscow River, the city is creating new points of growth and facilities that attract residents. This allows us to redistribute traffic flow and overcome the problems of overcrowding in the center and uneven development, as well as to establish a new polycentric structure – to make Moscow a city that is great to work and live in,” Marat Khusnullin said.

Discussion participants agreed that the Moscow River should be an important component of the polycentric model. The key task for the next few years is to make the Moscow River an active part of city development and ensure that it becomes ac-cessible to city residents. Developing projects that are in close proximity to the river are subject to many risks, require signifi-cant investment amounts and have to take into consideration the interests of developers, the city and local residents.

During the panel session, participants discussed three main goals that should be centered in the plans of a large modern city that is marked by the intensification of financial, cultural and information channels – accessibility, diversity and flexibility.

Moscow isn’t just a big capital. According to Vicente Guallart, Chief Architect of Barcelona from 2011 to 2015, each district in Moscow has its own special character. The polycentric city model, which Moscow strives toward, active development of the Moscow River as a main avenue of transportation enables the Russian capital to improve the standard of living for resi-dents. According to Lord Mayor of Leipzig Burkard Jung, using waterways for transportation purposes and as public spaces improves the quality of city infrastructure.

A permanent member of the Moscow Urban Forum and depu-ty of the French National Assembly Maurice Leroy pointed out how much progress Moscow has made in the past five years. Moscow has surpassed Paris in some aspects of development, including in metro construction. The efficiency of management decisions in the Russian capital is apparent in the sphere of resi-dential construction and in the improvements that have been made to public spaces such as VDNKh, Gorky Park and Muzeon. All of these changes took place in the city over a very short peri-od of time. Maurice Leroy pointed out that Moscow is gradually transforming into a smart city, developing information technol-ogy to interact with residents and becoming a European leader in this sphere. ■

“Over the past five years, 400 green territories were cleaned up or created in Moscow – dozens of them pop up every year. The number of park visitors more than tripled, growing from 10 million people to 36 million people. This also includes VDNKh, which boasts over 20 million visitors,” the mayor of Moscow noted.

Work on expanding sidewalks is currently underway, which will double pedestrian capacity. This project also opened up the possibility of holding festivals and holidays that millions of peo-ple participate in on the streets. At the same time, the through-put capacity for cars has increased because parking spaces have been set up and traffic flow is more organized.

So far as the city-planning policy of the Moscow government is concerned, it entails the reduction of urban infill and the estab-lishment of new business activity centers.

“Over the past few years, business developer activity has shifted to new territories and former industrial zones that jointly ac-count for half of all real estate development,” Sergey Sobyanin said. According to him, the new city planning policy strikes a reasonable balance between the interests of developers and protecting the interests of Moscow residents.

Sergey Sobyanin also touched on a series of projects that are being implemented in Moscow jointly with foreign partners. Firstly, he noted the Russian-German project “Denkmal, Mos-cow” – an international exhibition on the preservation, restora-tion use and promotion of cultural heritage.

“Today, 80 percent of monuments in Moscow have been re-stored. I hope that we will catch up with Leipzig soon and will also have 90 percent of our monuments in good condi-

26 100Administrative and office facilities(28 facilities, 451,760 sq.m)

17 500Manufacturing and warehouse facilities(37 facilities, 405,990 sq.m)

9 400Retail and service facilities(55 facilities, 570,950 sq.m)

7 500Social facilities(25 facilities)

20 000Construction sector

Jobs created

Creating places of employment

Source: Department for the Development of New Territories of Moscow

80 500

CITY’S GRAPH



CITY’S GRAPH

Moscow’s ranking:63

Moscow

+129 spots compared to 2012 (192nd)

445cities/regions included in the rating

2thinknow Innovation Cities Global Indexreflects the innovative potential concentrated in the city

rankings: 1st placeSan Francisco / San Jose(Silicon Valley)

61st placeKobe,Japan

66th placeEdinburgh,United Kingdom

CITYLAB: 25 Most Economically Powerful Cities in the World

previously not included in the rankings

rankings: 1 – New York

2 – London

3 – Tokyo

4 – Gonkong

5 – Parizh

22 – Geneva

23 – Washington, Moscow, San Francisco

Moscow’s ranking:23 25cities/regions on the list


Business climate In Russian citiesA ++ – the highest score assigned by RA Expert

Investment attractiveness of Russian regionsRA Expert

A.T. Kearney Global Cities IndexRanks cities in terms of how “global” they are – that is, to what extent a city can be considered an international center

+11 places compared to 2010 (25th)

Has not changed between 2010 and 2014

In a group of regions with maximum potential and minimal risk

Has not changed

13 – Toronto

14 – Moscow

15 – Sidney

rankings: 1 – New York

2 – London

3 – Paris

Moscow’s ranking:14 125cities/regions included in the rating

Moscow’s score: A++ 100cities/regions included in the rating

Moscow's ranking 1A 85cities/regions included in the rating

T he service developed by the Federal Migration Service of the RF and the Association of European Businesses for Highly Qualified Specialists (HQSs) is a completely new solution without parallel. Before, in order to re-ceive a work permit for a specialist in Russia, company

representatives had to visit the offices of the FMS on several occasions, and present all documentation in paper format. Of-ten this required much time and effort, so the idea of creating a special service arose, one which allows employers/represen-tatives from a foreign company to submit applications and all accompanying documents in an electronic format. In addition, all document originals are presented at a visit in person to the FMS of Russia to pick up the papers which, by then, will have been processed. In such a way, the number of trips to various departments of the FMS of Russia is reduced to just the one.

It should be pointed out straight away that only companies which are part of the Association of European Businesses are able to make use of this new service. To do so, the company must be registered on the system, and for the AEB to confirm that it is indeed an Association member. Once registered, the company will have access to all of the services provided by the FMS. Com-pany representatives should put together the whole package of documents needed to apply for the Highly Qualified Specialist work permit, and send it to the AEB by email. The package of documents will be examined by the Association and, if it is free

In the summer of 2015, the Federal Migration Service of the RF and the Association of European Businesses presented a new service for granting work permits to highly skilled foreign specialists. Frank Schauff, CEO of the Association of European Businesses, reveals what they now need in order to receive such authorization, and what the procedure itself involves.

Receiving a Russian work permit for highly qualified foreign specialists has now become considerably simpler

of errors, it will be sent on to the FMS. The Federal Migration Service will check the documents once more and, if everything has been filled in correctly, they will send confirmation that the documents have been accepted. Over the course of 14 working days, the documents will be subjected to a full inspection. On the 15th working day, the work permit will be ready for issue and it will be possible to receive it in person on presentation of the original documents previously downloaded electronically.

Unveiling the service, Director of the FMS of Russia, Konstan-tin Romodanovsky declared that the status of Highly Qualified Specialist confers upon foreigners unprecedented benefits. Di-rectors of many foreign companies often ask us what benefits these are. Experts with high levels of skills coming to work in Russia are indeed provided with a range of benefits. Amongst them being the issuing of a work permit and visa which is valid for 3 years both for the employee himself and for accompanying members of his family. By comparison, ordinary specialists are issued with a visa and permit valid for no longer than a year. The HQS has 90 days to register at his place of residence, whereas the ordinary citizen has to do so within seven working days.

Aside from which, the process whereby one is granted a permit is becoming much simpler and quicker. All documents can be submitted electronically, and the permit can be received in as soon as 14 working days. Usually this process takes at least two months. Also, there are no quotas or permits applicable to a company relating to the courting of a foreign expert. Amongst other benefits are, for example, not requiring a medical certifi-cate, and there are a host of other concessions.

We are also often asked, in which sectors of the Russian econ-omy foreign professionals are utilized the most. In light of the sanctions against Russia, how is the Russian labour market changing? According to our figures, the number of foreigners coming to Russia has dropped by 30%, which is linked to new projects being suspended. That said, the all-out “exodus” of for-eigners, as mentioned in the press, has not come to pass. In terms of individual industries and sectors, it is only with the oil companies that a substantial reduction of the number of ex-perts coming here to work has occurred: the remaining sectors of Russia’s economy have stayed at much the same level. ■

For Capital Ideas courtesy of BIGMOSCOW

CONSULTATIONS

Concessions for professionals


Going into business? Do it in Moscow!

Russia has improved its positions in the international World Bank Doing Business Index, hopping from 62nd to 51st. Investment policy reforms and changes in support for industrial plants were the main reasons behind the jump in ratings.

The World Bank index, which reflects each country’s business climate, is based on 10 key indicators for one or two main mega-cities. Russia’s score is based on data from Moscow and St. Petersburg (the capital has a much bigger impact on the final outcome). It is safe to say, therefore, that Russia’s bump in the rating was in many ways the result of the work performed by the Moscow Government in order to improve the city’s business environment.

The city was most successful in the following areas: “Connection to Power Grids” (moved up by 114 positions), “Construction Permits” (37 positions) and “Protecting the Interests of Minority Investors” (34 positions). There was also significant progress in “Access to Credit” (19 positions).

“This is not the first year Moscow has taken concrete, systematic action to improve the investment climate: we have adopted and implemented the investment strategy up until 2025, as well as adopted laws on systemic investor and manufacturing support,” says Maksim Reshetnikov, Minister of the Moscow Government and Director of the Moscow Department for Economic Policy and Development, “Special attention was paid to simplifying procedures for starting and running a business, as well as stimulating real economic growth.”

“There are a lot of changes in the regions and we are seeing real results,” says Konstantin Polunin, partner and managing director at The Boston Consulting Group in Moscow, about the positive shift in the rankings, “The climate is changing and trust between business and the government is growing slowly but surely. There is a connection between a country’s position in the rankings and GDP growth, and we are sure that next year we will see more concrete results – real investments and projects.”

The capital's business climate bumps up Russia in World Bank index

Note from Capital Ideas

The Doing Business Index is an annual ranking put together by the World Bank. The index ranks 189 countries based on how easy it is to do business in each country. The final report provides objective measures of business regulations for small and medium-size companies.

“What can be considered human emotions? Surely

not only lyricism, sadness, tragedy? Doesn’t laughter

also have a claim to that lofty title? I want to fight for

the legitimate right of laughter in “serious” music.” Dmitri Shostakovich, Soviet composer and pianist

“You could cover the whole earth with asphalt, but sooner or later green grass

would break through”.Ilya Ehrenburg, Soviet writer, journalist, translator, and cultural figure.

MOSCOW IN WORDS

“Listen! If stars are lit, It means there is someone who needs it, It means someone

wants them to be, That someone deems those specks of spit Magnificent!”

Vladimir Mayakovsky, Russian Soviet poet, playwright


“I think that for the highest achievements nowadays... need to have the stable

as a rock scientific base. And also need to own modesty”.

Alexander Alekhine, Russian chess grandmaster and the fourth World Chess Champion

“Some sort of pressure must exist; the artist exists because the world is not

perfect. Art would be useless if the world were perfect, as man wouldn’t look for

harmony but would simply live in it. Art is born out of an ill-designed world.”

Andrei Tarkovsky, Soviet filmmaker, writer, film editor and opera director.

“Mind you, sometimes the angels smoke, hiding it with their sleeves, and when

the archangel comes, they throw the cigarettes away: that’s when you get

shooting stars.”

Vladimir Nabokov, Russian novelist


the years have supported and encouraged me in my efforts to learn the language. I have a feeling that the more I know Russian, the better I understand how lit-tle I know. But that in itself is a liberating feeling. One just has to forget about the limits of one’s knowledge and use the language.

This is a rather personal question. A few words about yourself: Why did you choose to become a diplomat? What do you credit yourself with dur-ing your posting in Moscow?

I was very interested in what was going on in the world already before I went to school. The interest grew gradually more systematic, and in university I studied journalism and international relations. I don't remember a clear moment of decision on becoming a diplomat. There was, as it often happens, an element of coincidence in 1976 for me not only to apply for the Foreign Service but also to be accepted from among almost 1000 applicants. Maybe it was my destiny to become a diplomat.

In Moscow I have tried to do what is the task of a diplomat: to promote bilateral relations between my country and my host country, and to convey a truthful and realistic picture of what happens in the country. As you would know, the past two years have been un-

It is hardly a secret that sauna in Finland is more than simply a place you get a proper washing and cleaning of yourself. It is a rallying and assem-bly point where people tend to discuss business, politics, and also gossip. What is the “talk of the town” today in Finland?

Gossip, of course, is endless, but it is more difficult to follow it from abroad. People talk and gossip every-where, not only in the sauna: restaurants, cafes, par-ties, at the workplace. Judging from what I read, see and hear in the media, the hot topics of debate today are the economy and the European refugee crisis.

You speak beautiful Russian. When did you start to master it?

I don't think I master Russian, which I think is some-thing only unusually talented non-Russians can ever dream to achieve. It is my third time in Russia and the former Soviet Union, and I will have lived in this coun-try altogether for more than seven years by the time I will leave Moscow probably next year. It is a long time by any measure, and something will have to have happened in the language segment of my brain.

Russian is a beautiful if difficult language. I owe a deep gratitude to my Russian friends who through

Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Finland in Russia answers questions of Capital Ideas in an exclusive interview

Hannu Himanen:

I would not be a diplomat if I weren’t

an optimist

MOSCOW GLOBAL


usually difficult, but it is all the more important that we diplomats try to keep channels of communication open. We have had a lot of commercial and business events and cultural manifestations during my stay in Moscow. I hope some of this activity has made an im-pact and promoted relations between our countries in a positive way.

According to metropolitan media reports no Eu-ropean company has closed down its offices in the Russian capital. Official statistics shows that American big business has a strong footprint on the Moscow market terrain too. What about the entrepreneurs and business people from Finland? What’s the state of play, in particular, for such companies like Stockmann, Valio and others?

Finnish business continues to operate in Russia, and no major company has left the Russian market be-cause of the current crisis. It is obvious, though, that companies working in the retail sector have suffered a lot as Russian consumers have much less money to spend than before the crisis. This has meant that com-panies like Stockmann, Prisma and others are strug-gling. Valio and other Finnish companies in the food sector have been particularly hard hit by the Russian food import ban.

Also, both housing and commercial construction have slowed down. Finnish construction companies and suppliers working in the construction sector are cur-rently faced with considerable challenges. But they

are hanging on and know better times are coming, sooner or later.

Would you care to name some major joint Russo-Finnish economic projects that have been put on stream? Are there any other projects in the pipe-line? Or has everything come to a standstill and we shall have to start anew?

Even though investment is very slow at the moment, some activity takes place. New production plants have opened, and some existing ones have been expanded. The most significant investment is being prepared in Finland, as the Finnish energy company Fennovoima and the Russian Rosatom have agreed to build a nuclear power plant in Finland as a joint project. The preparations will still continue for a couple of years. Once started, the Hanhikivi power plant project will have a major impact on the Finnish economy and the economic relations between Fin-land and Russia.

In September 2010, Moscow hosted Days of Fin-land. Any plans to duplicate the past success?

For the time being, we are not planning any major promotion events in Moscow. We rather believe in agility and a constant effort to target selected au-diences in Russia, not only in the capital but also in other cities. For obviousreasons, St. Petersburg is a particularly important and an interesting destination for Finnish cultural exports. I am just on my way to


MOSCOW GLOBAL

opening a major exhibition on Finnish architecture and design in the State Hermitage in St. Petersburg.

Regrettably, the economic crisis has hit the tour-ist industry hard. The stream of Russian travelers to Finland has severely dried out, did it not? Is it true that your fellow-countrymen have cut the number of their trips to Russia?

Indeed, flows of travelers in both directions have been coming down. The main reason for Russians not to travel as they used to is the rouble exchange rate. People travel less, and they spend less money while travelling. The economic implications are serious. For some reason, the exchange rate has not been enough to attract more Finns to Russia. The situation will im-prove when the economic situation improves.

How would you appraise the quality of work of the consular services of Finland in the Russian Federation?

We are doing our best, and judging by the feedback we get from our customers, our level of service in consular activities is very good. For our Russian visa customers, we promise efficient and polite service.

Your Excellency, what is you view on the state of play of the cultural ties between Moscow and Helsinki? Do you happen to know which particu-lar Russian theatres and artists the Finnish public would be eager to host and welcome in the near future?

A number of things have happened by way of cultural exchanges between Finland and Russia in the re-cent past, and there is more to come. Russia was the theme country at the Helsinki Book Fair at the end of October. Some 30 Russian authors participated, and the Finnish public showed a lot of serious interest. Some Finnish authors will be present at the forth-coming Non/fiction Book Fair in Moscow.

Russian theatre is performed in Finland and vice ver-sa. Finnish art was present at the Moscow Biennale. Musicians perform in both countries. The Embassy or-ganizes regular concerts, with the 150th anniversary of Jean Sibelius having been the key theme in 2015.

The annual Finnish-Russian Cultural Forum has es-tablished itself as a major event, with up to 400 par-ticipants each year. This year’s Forum was hosted by Petrozavodsk, next year it will take place in Tampere, Finland, and in 2017, St. Petersburg will be the venue. This year’s forum witnessed more than 70 agree-ments on new cultural projects. Most of them are fairly small-scale, but they have considerable impact for the communities in which they are carried out, both in Finland and in Russia.

Ambassador, do you have any favorite spots in Moscow? What museum, park or natural reserve in and around Moscow would you recommend to your visiting friends?

There are too many great places in Moscow to make a simple list. The city is an endless trove of discovery. I enjoy walking in the city and see places that I have not known previously. I have seen fabulous exhibitions at the Tretyakov Gallery, the Pushkin Museum, at the Vinzavod. The Jewish Museum (and the Tolerance Cen-tre) is not only a beautiful space but also an interesting museum with an important message. It uses modern technology in fresh and imaginative ways.

Gorky Park is my favourite destination for walks to enjoy the greenery, to get exercise and fresh air, and to watch Muscovites relax in their free time. I walk to the Novodevitch Cemetery regularly, as it provides spaces for quiet comtemplation and never fails to re-veal new discoveries.

Diplomats are known to be very busy. Do you se-cure some spare time to go to a theater or the Moscow Conservatoire, which is known to be one of your preferred places?

Yes, the life of a diplomat in Moscow is busy, but it has not prevented me from enjoying music regularly. The Great Hall of the Moscow Conservatory has a constant supply of top-quality concerts. The Tchai-kovsky Hall also hosts many great performances. To me, music offers a necessary counterbalance in a busy life. I always walk out of a concert spiritually renewed and energized.

The Finnish tradition to award small figures of “Smiling Boy” and “Smiling Girl” to the most hap-py and radiant schoolchildren at the end of the school year has crossed the 60 years milestone. A long time ago, this award went to the 11-year old HannuHimanen. Have you managed to pre-serve this optimistic outlook for life? Is it appli-cable as well to the development of relations be-tween Finland and Russia?

Little did the young boy know what life would bring along...

Yes, indeed, I was awarded the Smiling Boy statue long time ago. It is for other to judge whether I have been able to maintain the standard of optimism and energy. But I would not be a diplomat if I weren’t fun-damentally an optimist. I fail to accept that problems cannot be solved and things moved forward. Despite the current problems, I am sure relations between Finland and Russia will continue to develop favour-ably in the coming years. ■


Mr. Reichert, Fraikin entered the Russian market in August of this year, right?

Yes, although Fraikin representatives began re-searching the market here two and a half years ago. They talked to various suppliers, different leasing, transportation and logistics companies. They re-searched everything thoroughly, assessed all the risks with the help of experts from various organi-zations. I was first contacted by Fraikin in October of last year. They found me while they were looking for a specific person to head up the representative office in Russia.

But so much happened in these two and a half years – the West has imposed sanctions on Rus-sia, there is a crisis…weren’t there people at Frai-kin who wanted to wait for a better time to enter the market here?

You know when I was about to sign the contract with the company in December 2014, the ruble expe-rienced a very sharp drop – one euro was equal to one hundred rubles! I remember asking whether or not this changed anything. The company responded “Of course not!” What Fraikin does doesn’t really de-pend on the political climate that much. The company came to Russia to stay. There is a lot potential here for our business – leasing commercial and industrial vehicles. The market for this here is truly bottomless. After all, it would be impossible to cover the entirety of Russia with railway tracks. Moreover, a lot of Rus-sian companies are optimizing their transport costs right now. If you have your own vehicle fleet, you con-stantly have to pay for maintenance. We, on the other hand, can lease you a truck at a fixed price, and you don’t have to worry about any surprises.

By the way, this year Fraikin entered the market in Saudi Arabia as well. We also expanded our presence

Crisis, sanctions…seems like it’s a challenge to find anybody in business who is not, in one way or another, scared of these two words. Kai Reichert, the CEO of Fraikin Russia, is not easily spooked. “Starting a company during a crisis is an advantage,” Mr. Reichert said during an exclusive interview with Capital Ideas.

Kai Reichert:

We’re hereto stay

NOTHING VENTURED


in Europe, including Germany, where the company is headed by my former colleagues from MAN.

So far as the crisis is concerned, I’ll tell you honestly: starting a company during a crisis is an advantage. Because the ruble has crashed, everything in Russia is cheaper right now: the workforce, electricity, renting office space, etc. Before the crisis, for example, it was sometimes more expensive to rent here than it was to rent space in Germany or even Paris.

It seems like every foreign company needs to fol-low your advice and come to Russia!

Yes, but there is a big problem – the reliability of the judicial system. For foreign investors, this is extremely important. Unfortunately, many people are wary of en-tering the Russian market because of this right now. For example, you sign a contract but somebody – be it the government or another company – breaks it. You take the case to court. But you aren’t completely confident that the court will make a just decision. I’ll say it again – this is the biggest barrier, the reason why a lot of foreign companies are not entering the Russian market.

What kind of vehicles do you lease?

Mercedes, Iveco, MAN… before the end of the year, our fleet will contain over 50 vehicles. All of them are located at dealerships right now, because we don’t have our own parking lot: we simply have no need for it! Our vehicles need to constantly be on the road! By the way, aside from trucks – refrigerator trucks and tractor-trailers – we also plan to offer snow removal vehicles and ambu-lances in Moscow and St. Petersburg in the near future.

In five years, we plan on having up to five thousand units of automotive machinery for a wide range of purposes.

Who are you working with now?

So far, the only contract we have is with a logistics com-pany that transports a variety of products for Danon. Our first trucks will be on the road in December.

Do you have competition in Russia?

No, there are no companies exactly like Fraikin in Russia right now. There are companies that lease cars, trans-portation companies and logistics companies with huge fleets. But that’s something different. Our goal is to be-come established in this niche and not let others in – to run things on our terms. In other words, we picked a good time to enter the Russian market. We are open to everybody – we are ready to work with leasing compa-nies, private companies and state companies.

Can somebody rent just one truck from you?

Yes. We only have one requirement when it comes to our clients: they have to be reliable. This is our most important criterion.

When do you think the crisis in Russia will be over? Do you think about this in general?

Of course I think about this. You know, I agree with the experts at Citibank, who have asserted that the sanctions account for just ten percent of the economic downturn in Russia. The rest happened because of oil prices and other related factors. I hope that the people who make deci-sions in Russia understand that each country has to find its own competitive advantages. This is what Germany did at one point when it started, among other things, to actively develop small and medium-size business. Of course it’s important to develop the Russian economy. There is no better time to do that than right now. A crisis is a great time for a market like this.

Let’s talk about something else. How long were you with the MAN office in Moscow?

Eight years. I was the Deputy CEO and was in charge of truck sales in Russia.

So you have been in Russia for nine years?

More than that! I was with a number of law firms here in the early 2000s. I’m actually a lawyer – I got my


NOTHING VENTURED

law degree in Hamburg. I then continued my educa-tion in Kazan and got my MBA in England.

So you really understand the Russian auto trans-portation market and the country’s legislation – seems Fraikin knew exactly who to hire! Do you like living in Moscow?

If I didn’t, I wouldn’t be living here.

Who knows, maybe your salary is so high here that you’re just willing to put up with it!

A good standard of living is about a lot more than sala-ry – everything has to come together. This includes the people I’m surrounded by at work, the company itself

and to opportunities this city has to offer. Moscow is unique in this sense. There are a lot of interesting things here, for both adults and children – theatres, museums, exhibitions…there is something new to do every day! You can send your children to a Russian school, or an English or German school – this isn’t an option in Ham-burg, my hometown. There are only German schools there. All of these things are the advantages a big city has to offer. And the countryside is so beautiful here in the winter and summer! Of course, my family and I live out in the country, not in the city.

Did you even learn how to pick mushrooms? Can you tell a birch bolete from an aspen bolete?

Of course! (Laughs) ■


countries. The innovative platform Philips CityTouch provides a remote control system for all city lights that are hooked up to the system. With the help of the solu-tion, road and highway lighting can be controlled and regulated so that there is enough bright lighting during peak hours and less lighting in the middle of the night. The system’s motion sensors will turn on the lights in a dark park in the middle of the night as soon as a person walks in. If you program different lighting scenarios, the lighting will change for the holidays or important events.

“Philips CityTouch lighting management system can help city authorities reduce power consumption by up to 70%,” Natalia Neverskaya says, “at the same time, managing lighting becomes easier and technical sup-port costs are reduced by up to 20%.”

Philips innovative lighting solutions are used to light some of the most famous architectural masterpieces in the world: the Eiffel Tower and the Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris, the Empire State Building in New York, the Ferris wheel in London, the Great Pyramids in Egypt and the Maracana stadium in Rio de Janeiro.

Philips systems are also used to light many buildings and locations in Moscow, including the Book Buildings on New Arbat, Tverskaya Street, Gorky Park and the Garden Ring. Modern solutions for architectural light-ing allow for the programming of various lighting sce-narios, which helps the authorities decorate the city in accordance with city holidays or days of the week,

L ight is changing. Modern lighting systems be-come an integral part of urban infrastructure. Innovative lighting solutions beautify spaces and transform environments. New lighting so-lutions such as LED technology deliver energy

efficiency, sustainability, and operational cost reduction. They enable lighting systems that consist of luminaires, controls and services. LED solutions can be connected and easily integrated into any infrastructure. That is what makes modern lighting systems intelligent.

Philips lighting solutions deliver value beyond illumi-nation. Market leaders combine world-class tradi-tional and LED luminaires with analog and digital con-trols that let you deliver exactly the right illumination experiences, whenever and wherever you need them. The company has pioneered many of the key break-throughs in lighting over the past 124 years, laying the basis for our current strength and leadership position as we drive the LED and digital lighting revolution.

“The transition to LED lighting,” Natalia Neverskaya says, “is one of our priorities at Philips, both globally and in Russia. We offer a full range of lighting solu-tions for all market segments. Our portfolio includes innovative lighting solutions for architectural and in-dustrial objects, streets and public spaces, retail and hospitality, sport complexes and office buildings”.

There is an interesting solution that is already being used in London, Prague, Los Angeles, Buenos Aires and other

Light can be used for much more than decoration. Thanks to new, advanced technology, light can be “smart,” “emotional” and even provide a solution to business challenges by creating a unique look for the city at night. “Architectural lighting is an important component of a city’s brand that can help attract investments and tourism,” says Natalia Neverskaya, Head of Government and Public Affairs, Corporate Communication, Philips Lighting, Russia and CIS.

NOTHING VENTURED


Smart lightingfor smart cities

or even to conduct social initiatives. For example, the buildings on New Arbat were lit up with pink light-ing for the fourth year in a row during Breast Can-cer Awareness month this year, reminding women to get regular check-ups. The original lighting format at Savelovsky City business center has been implement-ed as part of a program to turn the former industrial zone into a promising residential and business area in Moscow. The lighting system at the Bauman Gar-den in Moscow can be controlled remotely – admin-istrators can do this with the help of mobile devices (smartphones, for example).

The Moscow Cathedral Mosque has recently opened its doors again after a large-scale renovation proj-

ect. Philips put together a unique lighting solution for this magnificent building with a massive dome and six minarets. The lighting system, which was created based on Philips Color Kinetics LED lighting systems, highlights the geometry of traditional Muslim archi-tecture with the help of green accents and enables the creation of various lighting scenarios during Mus-lim holidays. 750 different units of lighting equipment were used to put the system together.

“Philips Lighting,” Natalia Neverskaya says, “is the largest manufacturer of lighting technology in the world and is the market leader in LED lighting. In 2014, company profits amounted to 293 million eu-ros. 255 million euros were used to fund the Green Innovations program, the main objective of which is the development of energy efficient technology that will set the tone for the future of lighting in the world.”

According to international research results, a com-plete transition to innovative LED lighting will reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 16.9 million tons and will save $3 billion annually. Depending on what field they are used in, LED technology reliably operate for 15-20 years and reduce power consumption by up to 90%.

The authorities of modern mega-cities are actively implementing advanced lighting solutions and using innovative features that make the everyday lives of citizens more comfortable. Russia is not lagging be-hind in terms of this global trend. The Moscow au-thorities frequently opt to use lighting as a way to decorate the city and communicate with guests and residents, creating a unique lighting environment. ■


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New Arbat.


Cathedral Mosque.

Bauman Garden.

Gorky Park.

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Mr. Goncharov, could you tell us about WIKA’s op-erations in Russia?

WIKA has been operating in Russia for 20 years. Over this period of time, the company has considerably expanded the scope of its activities. There are a total of 10 regional WIKA MERA branches in the country. Aside from this, the company has a big warehouse in Moscow. There is also a WIKA production facil-ity in the Russian capital – it has been here for over 10 years. Long before Russia started showing signs of a crisis and import-substitution program, WIKA planned to launch a new plant with a lot more capac-ity. Four years ago, the company acquired land out-side of Moscow in order to build this new plant. We are currently waiting on a final permission document from the Moscow government so that we can begin construction. According to our estimates, construc-tion should begin no later than March 2016 and the new plant is to be commissioned in January 2017.

Why does the company want to develop its pro-duction in Russia?

The equipment that we manufacture needs to be as close to our customer as possible. Importing products from Germany is not the most efficient solution, given the current market conditions – opening a local manu-facturing plant is much better. This will allow us to take into account all of the specifics of the local market, as

well as to cut down on delivery time. All of this gives us additional competitive advantages and allows us to be more flexible and timely in terms of reacting to changes in the market. It so happened that our plans to open the new plant fell in line with the new trends that favor import substitution. I am sure that the import substitution objectives set by the Russian government are entirely realistic. I am aware what a lot of foreign

Oleg Goncharov is the General Director at WIKA MERA (WIKA`Russia). He has been

working in international business for over 25 years and has a clear understanding of how

to set up and develop the business of an international corporation in Russia. In this special

interview with Capital Ideas, Oleg talked about WIKA’s operation on the Russian market,

as well as about how the company is implementing local production plans here.

WIKA: business with German

precision


experts and expats working in Russia, as well as suc-cessful foreign businessmen who consider Russia to be a great manufacturing powerhouse think about this. Of course, import substitution should not be regarded as a goal that can be accomplished overnight. On the contrary, this process will take more than just one year and will require a lot of effort from all market partici-pants, including the Russian authorities. I’ll also note that a lot of foreign business representatives agree that the steps the Russian government is taking are quire reasonable and will benefit the state. The process has been efficient so far – the fact that we have not seen any major scandals or exits from major foreign compa-nies serves as proof of this.

What are your plans in terms of localization?

We have worked out plans to localize production. Of course, it will take a while for us to reach the desired level of localization – we will have to create a compo-nent base, find and certify suppliers, and so on. It’s a chal-lenging and complex task that will take several steps to complete. The first step will be setting up the assembly of products from the components that WIKA supplies to its enterprises all over the world – the US, Europe, Asia and Latin America. In the long-term, we plan on increasing the degree of localization (for individual in-struments) to 70-80%. I’ll also note that the production site, currently operating in Moscow, which makes two kinds of products, has enabled us to localize 20-25% of the manufacturing process for one product and 50% of the manufacturing process for the other product.


WIKA is a private German company founded in 1946. The company specializes in the production and development of pressure, temperature and level measurement products and technology. WIKA began manufacturing manometers seventy years ago. Since then, the company has grown and expanded its sphere of activity, including by incorporating other companies into its structure. It currently owns about 40 brands worldwide. WIKA continues to develop today and plans to expand its positions both in Russia and globally.

The WIKA product range currently includes a variety of instrumentational products and solutions, that can be used across a wide range of industries, from oil and gas to the utilities sector. The company’s product range can be classified into four categories: measurement products and technology for pressure, temperature, flow and level. Like the majority of German manufacturers, WIKA is a leader in its market segment and has subsidiaries in over 50 countries. Moreover, WIKA actively develops and expands its production capacities. The company has opened plants in many countries throughout the world.

What is WIKA’s key to success in terms of work-ing on the Russian market?

WIKA was born in Germany and operated in accor-dance with the German approach for many years, which means that we prioritized quality above every-thing else. In my experience, German companies are successful on the global market because the prod-uct itself – the quality and functionality – is always at the center of the attention. In this sense, WIKA is no exception: everything the company manufactures falls in the top tier both in terms of technology and innovation. Everything that WIKA has accomplished in the past 20 years here has been possible thanks to product quality, as well as our focus on customer sat-isfaction. In order to be successful in today’s business world, it is necessary to apply a systematic approach to your development. There are no aspects to a com-pany’s operations that are not important – everything is extremely significant, from staff training to adjust-ing the manufacturing process and developing prod-ucts according to market demand.

How competitive is the market segment in which WIKA operates? What factors of competition are at play here?

I think that the opportunity to perform on a com-petitive market serves as a major incentive for the development of any company. Our competitors con-stantly keep us in check, forcing us to pay attention and be creative. The products WIKA makes are not that unique, which is why we have a lot of competi-tors both on the international market and in Rus-sia. I’ll also note that the market for technology in the utilities sector is particularly competitive here – there is a wide range or products of every quality level. Conversely, more accurate and high-quality in-struments are in demand across spheres such as me-chanical engineering, the oil and gas sector, energy and the nuclear industry – industries where custom-ers are extremely demanding in terms of quality and functional capabilities. Not all manufacturers can meet these requirements, which is why WIKA has a high market share in these segments.

What are WIKA’s long-term plans on the Russian market?

Our strategic goal is to become the absolute market leader, and I think this is a realistic goal. In Germany, for example, WIKA accounts for up to 70% in its seg-ment. Our confidence in our success on the Russian market is based on several factors. First, we can offer high product quality. Second, we have manufacturing plants in the country. Third – proactive sales & mar-keting. We are confident that, by relying on the fac-tors listed above, we can become the leading position in our industries on the Russian market. ■

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Department for external economic and international relations of the Government of Moscow

Address: 13 Tverskaya Street, Moscow, 125032Ph: +7 (495) 633 68 66Fax: +7 (495) 633 68 65E-mail: [email protected]

Department of Science, Industrial Policy and Entrepreneurship of the Goverment of Moscow

Address: 22 Voznesensky Pereylok, Moscow, 125009Ph: +7 (495) 957 05 10Fax: +7 (495) 957 05 20E-mail: [email protected]

Department of Economic Policy and Development of the Government of Moscow

Address: 21 Voznesensky Pereylok, Moscow, 125032Ph: +7 (495) 957 72 21Fax: +7 (495) 629 33 42E-mail: [email protected]

Department of City Property of the Government of MoscowAddress: 20 Bakhrushina Street, Moscow, 115054Ph:+7(495) 587 70 87Fax: +7 (495) 959 19 82E-mail: [email protected]

Moscow Exchange Address: Office 1: 125009 Moscow, Bolshoy Kislovsky per, 13 Office 2: 125009 Moscow, Vozdvizhenka Str, 4/7, Bld 1 Phone: +7 (495) 363 32 32, +7 (495) 232 05 55 Fax: +7 (495) 705 9622 www.moex.com

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a great deal – there are new parks, more extensive public transport, better developed roads and so on. And I have noticed that the city authorities are fo-cused on the average person – the city resident. This is why they are trying to make the city more comfort-able for life, work, leisure and sport.

Every capital in the world has its own distinctive features. What do you think makes Moscow dif-ferent? What needs to be done to improve the lives of Muscovites?

In my opinion, the vibrant cultural life is the number one thing that sets Moscow apart from other cit-ies. Every year, the city hosts a wide range of shows, concerts, exhibitions and other events. This is a city that never sleeps. I live close to Red October and I can assure you that this district has more traffic jams at night than during the day!

By the way, in spite of the fact that traffic manage-ment in the city has improved, there are still traffic jams. Of course, the Moscow government still has more to do in terms of improving the living standards in the city. I am talking, among other things, of further

Mr. Pegorier, how long have you lived in Russia?

I moved here to work 32 years ago. However, prior to that, when I was still at school, I visited the USSR dur-ing my summer holidays to practice Russian. I have spent a total of 18 years living and working in Moscow, and eight years in Kiev.

What were your first impressions of Moscow? What was the city like when you first arrived, and how different was it from the capital we see today?

It was a completely different city! It was a very differ-ent era – one that probably should not be compared with that of the present. In my opinion, Moscow was and still is one of the most beautiful cities in the world – a city with unique buildings and architectural monuments. Much like today, the city was brimming with life during Soviet times: there were a lot of cul-tural and social events. Of course, these events were different in meaning and content, just as the cars on the roads and the products in the grocery stores were different also. Today, Moscow is a city of the new mil-lennium, which changed before my very eyes. In the past 10 years, the standard of living here has improved

Philippe Pegorier, the Chairman of the AEB Board, has been living in Russia for several decades. He speaks fluent Russian and truly understands the ins and outs of doing business in the country. In his interview with Capital Ideas, Mr. Pegorier talked about his life in Moscow and about how the AEB has dealt with the more challenging periods that have faced the Russian market.

NOTHING VENTURED

Philippe Pegorier:

The crisis in Russiais a temporary phenomenon



NOTHING VENTURED

condment). I want to point out that the AEB carries out this work daily in order to ensure favourable con-ditions for European investors in Russia.

I would also like to point out that the volume of Eu-ropean investment amounts to 170 billion euro, which accounts for 75% of all direct foreign investments in the Russian economy. Almost all major European companies already have a presence in Russia, which is why finding new investors is a problem. The compa-nies that are already present here are mostly increas-ing their investment volumes in order to strengthen their positions and expand their market share.

Russia has gone through many crises, and the one we are dealing with right now is not anything out of the ordinary. Regardless of whether or not there is a cri-sis, the most important thing is to keep working hard – and to be persistent. It is worth noting that not a single major European company has exited the Rus-sian market during this current crisis. Everybody has continued to maintain their operations here, know-ing that these challenging times will come to an end sooner or later.

In terms of the structure of the AEB, what are the key committees? What role do they play?

It is difficult to say which committees are the most significant. All of them are important and perform key functions. We have industrial committees and “hori-zontal” cross-sectoral committees. In terms of indus-trial committees, I would point out the Automobile Manufacturers Committee, committees working in the agricultural sector, the Banking Committee and, of course, the Energy Committee, which bring together a lot of investors. Important horizontal committees include the Customs Committee, the Migration Com-mittee, which works actively with the Russian Federal Migration Service, and many others. These are just an example. All 45 of the committees and working groups that are part of the AEB accomplish a great deal. They hold about 300 internal meetings and 100 different types of open events annually. In my opinion, the AEB is currently one of the most influential repre-sentations of foreign investors in Russia.

Mr. Pegorier, why does European business believe in the potential of the Russian market? What are the reasons behind this optimism?

I have been working in Russia for many years and know from experience that a crisis in this country is a temporary phenomenon. Moreover, Russia is the big-gest country in the world – a real powerhouse. The course that the current government has set for im-port substitution and localisation is a robust solution that will definitely yield great results in the future. ■

development of the public transportation, a broader shift to environmentally-friendly auto transport, and development of the road infrastructure.

In your opinion, how do people who live in Rus-sia differ from those who live in other countries? Is there anything that sets Russian businessmen apart from the rest?

There are obviously differences. There are a lot of un-forseeable people here, which of course is a factor that needs to be taken into account, especially when it comes to work. There is another difference: a lot here depends on personal relationships between people. Russians prefer to do business with people they trust. Many Rus-sian businessmen prefer to take their time in making a decision, but then expect quick and tangible results.

Mr. Pegorier, can you tell us how the Association of European Businesses is doing in Russia right now under the current market conditions?

Yes, these truly are challenging times. We are right in the middle of a political conflict between the EU and Russia. At the moment, the AEB is working hard to maintain productive relationships with both Rus-sian and European government representatives and business partners.

We are maintaining constant dialogue with the Rus-sian authorities and are discussing various legislative initiatives. The AEB has already expressed its disap-proval of the sanctions imposed against Russia and counter sanctions by Russia. We are currently in talks regarding the legalisation on parallel imports, as well as on the laws on personal data and outstaffing (se-


Philippe Pegorier (54) has been the Chairman of the Board at the AEB in Russia since May 2014 (re-elected in May 2015). He has been the President of Alstom in Russia, Ukraine and Belarus since January 2011. Prior to his current functions, he held senior positions at the French Ministry of Foreign Trade, was the Head of the Economic Mission in Teheran, and was the Economic and Commercial Counsellor at the French Em-bassy in Ukraine. Mr. Pegorier is a graduate of the Bordeaux Business School and holds the Legion of Honour. In 2015, he received the Russian Foreign Ministry award “For Contribu-tion to International Cooperation.” His hobbies include sport, reading and playing bridge.


Since the beginning of 2013 Capital Ideas has been successfully presented at Destination Moscow roadshows held in London, Frankfurt, Tokyo, Boston,

New York and many other cities around the world

around the worldDear Ladies and Gentlemen!We hope that you like Capital Ideas. Please give us your feedback and send us your comments. This will all help to make Moscow a better place to work and live.

Sergo Kukhianidze, Editor in Chief

Write to Sergo Kukhianidze at [email protected]

Mr. Sturua, as an expert in US politics, are you heartbroken over the fact that the US and Russia are fighting?

I don’t think we are in a fight with America, though our re-lations do leave much to be desired. Strange as it may seem, the relationship between the presidents play an important role here. It’s hard to figure out what we’re seeing here – a com-plete misunderstanding or an underestimation? In any case, my opinion is that Obama envies Putin.

That’s an interesting turn!

Yes, he envies Putin because he cannot do what Putin does.

Do you mean at home or abroad?

In the international arena, of course, specifically in the Middle East. What’s the problem? The problem is that Obama has a year and a half left in the White House. For him, the most im-portant thing right now is to not have coffins with American soldiers coming back to the US. This is a priority for him. Obama does not want to leave Hillary Clinton – and I think she is most likely to win the next election – with this burden. So his hands are tied – he cannot act as decisively as our president does. In a way, Obama is jealous of Putin’s power.

Aren’t we also afraid of coffins with our own soldiers in them?

We aren’t. This is because, according to Putin, ground opera-tions in Syria or Iraq are out of the question. That’s the first thing. The other thing is that even if a Russian plane is taken down by ISIS, the story will not reflect poorly on our presi-dent. After all, there is a war going on. But if ISIS takes down a US plane, this will reflect poorly on Obama and will also have an effect on the upcoming elections – Hillary Clinton or some other Democratic candidate will be less likely to win. Obama is so afraid of this that he would rather sacrifice his image than a single US plane, a single US soldier. He has to be one hundred percent certain that this would not happen.

So this means that Vladimir Putin’s foreign policy advisors, who were well aware of all of this, decided to take advan-tage of the situation…

Right, that’s what I’m getting at. I think we are very lucky that Obama is the US president right now – he is a “lame duck.” Our media is so caught up in the information war and in criticizing Obama right now that we are unfortunately failing to realize this. Nobody is looking at things from a dif-ferent perspective: had there been some right-wing Republi-can like McCain in Obama’s place, we would have an entirely different situation on our hands. We would have a real proxy war. But right now Obama is simply forced to go along with what we’re doing. He is paralyzed. If you think that you have better military equipment than Russia, if you have more re-sources than Russia but you can’t use any of this, of course

“The sanctions against Moscow don’t have a time limit at all, in my opinion. They remind me of the Jackson-Vanik amendment,” said the legendary journalist Melor STURUA in an exclusive interview with Sergo Kukhianidze, Editor-in-Chief at Capital Ideas.

OUR INTERVIEW

Melor Sturua:

Obama enviesPutin’s power


you’re going to be frustrated – even more so than you would under regular circumstances. Perhaps this is why Obama’s reaction to Moscow’s decisions was so harsh. Obama would not be acting this way if he were able to use the resources he has at his disposal.

Of course, Washington wasn’t expecting Russia to behave this way…

Of course not! The thought that Putin would take such a bold step – military air raids to combat terrorists – did not even oc-cur to them.

Whatever the case may be, is Russia feared now?

Undoubtedly.

But isn’t this a bad thing?

It is bad, but the question is: why are they afraid of Russia? Be-cause Moscow’s steps have not been predictable. They say: we can do something, but then Putin will raise the stakes again. And if he does this, things may escalate to a nuclear limit. Which is why, as I said, nobody is really putting up any resistance. Not the Americans, not the Brits, the Germans or the French.

So what will happen with Syria next?

I don’t think anybody knows the answer to that question – it’s way too difficult of a situation to be able to predict the future. A lot of sides have an interest in the conflict. Aside from Russia, the US and Europe, there are Iran, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Israel, Turkey, Qatar…we don’t know, for example, how strong Assad’s army is. If his regime is already weak, nobody will be able to support it from the air. Moreover, Pu-tin says that we have time limits – we can’t bomb all of the time. There are constraints. Nobody knows whether or not this will be enough to put Assad’s Syria back on its feet. In other words, the situation is so unpredictable right now that only God or Allah, if they exist, know what’s going to happen in the Middle East in the near future.

The sanctions against Russia weren’t prompted by the situ-ation in Syria, but they’ve obviously been toughened in the recent months. It looks like this will be going on for a while. What do you think?

I would take it a step further, actually. The sanctions against Moscow don’t have a time limit at all, in my opinion. They re-mind me of the Jackson-Vanik amendment, which linked trade relations between the US and the USSR with the freedom of


OUR INTERVIEW


does not trust us completely. It’s important to remember that we were at war with China once. If I were to pick a country to help develop the Far East, I would opt for the Americans over the Chinese. Trust me, dealing with American businessmen is a much safer bet.

If only some day we could join forces with the US – there wouldn’t be a more powerful force in the world!

Easy to say… (Smiles)

Who do you think won the Cold War?

Officially, the US – the USSR fell apart! In spite of the fact that this was a Cold War, Americans think they are entitled to repa-rations. And what kind of reparations could the winner in a Cold War possibly demand? Perfect obedience. But Russia, as a great nuclear power, will obviously never agree to this.

That’s what’s happening now. But not so long ago, at least after perestroika, Moscow was following Washington’s lead. It was almost comical: our leaders were almost in awe of their American colleagues…

Difficult as it may be to say this, I think that we had to go through this period of humiliation. Sooner or later, we had to have this happen to our country. I would have preferred for it to be shorter and more specific, but there are no coin-cidences in life. Who knows: maybe Gorbachev-Shevernadze and Yeltsin-Kozyrev helped the country overcome a difficult period…

An interesting thought: Russia survived by trading in the iron fist for the helping hand

Unfortunately, this seems to be a consistent pattern for us: the iron fist, then the helping hand… Seems like what we we’re re-ally lacking is our independence, which is what will at last give us freedom.

Sometimes it seems that things were better during the Cold War – everything was clear and easy to understand; there were rules that both Moscow and Washington followed. There was fear, but there was also mutual respect! Be hon-est: do you feel any nostalgia over the Cold War?

(Laughs) My nostalgia can be interpreted as a longing for the strong state that the Soviet Union used to be – one that was a match for the US. Because of this, everything in the world was in order. Now, because the US refuses to accept Russia as an equal, there is chaos.

In other words, you are concerned about what’s happening in the world?

No, because I have no doubt that the conflict will not reach a boiling point. I am sure that both Obama and Putin have an interest in keeping peace. ■

emigration of Jews from the Soviet Union. It was passed in 1975 and existed many years after all channels had been opened. The US always perceived this amendment as a tool it could use to apply pressure – if we did something they didn’t like, they could use it against us again.

Will we ever be able to transform our economy, or will we forever remain a “pipeline economy” – a country that relies primarily on oil and gas sales?

There is nothing bad about being a “pipeline economy.” How-ever, a country that wants to be truly great needs an economy that matches these ambitions – one that is grounded in ad-vanced technology and innovation. And this is possible only if changes happen in both the economy and the socio-political sphere. When there is a shift in public mentality – when people become independent and open – the objectives and ethics of the society also change.

Do you agree that sanctions will give the domestic economy the push it needs?

Not really. Yes, there is the import substitution that every-body keeps talking about, but this isn’t serious in my opinion. Because when we are removed from the world’s key financial centers – Wall Street and London – we’re losing a great deal. Moreover, Russia is essentially at war right now. Every plane launch, every round fired means millions of dollars are spent. I admit that I always think of an uncomfortable parallel – why did the USSR fall apart? If you remember, we were in an arms race that we weren’t able to handle financially. This led to the collapse of our economy and, subsequently, the collapse of the Soviet Union. I think the Kremlin realizes this. Because if we continue with the bombing, Americans may harshen the sanctions. It’s their only response to our actions. They can’t send 40 planes in response to us sending 20 – all they can do is work with sanctions. And we don’t know how this will affect domestic politics.

So this means that Russia and America are enemies again?

No, in spite of the fact that there has been a downturn in Rus-sian-American relations, I can’t say that this is the case. We are definitely not enemies; we are more like rivals.

But what kind of rivals? Previously, we were ideological ri-vals all over the world, but what about now?

Today we are what I would call regional rivals. Right now, this rivalry primarily manifests itself in the Middle East and in Eu-rope, because of Ukraine. It’s important to understand that we can’t be America’s top rival right now, because China has firmly established itself in this position over the past few years.

Perhaps this is why we are such good friends these days?

I wouldn’t call it friendship in the exact sense of the term. It’s more like we’re using each other. At the end of the day, China


Chamber of commerce and industry of the Russian Federation Address: 109012 Moscow, St. Ilyinka, 6/1, bldg. 1 PH: +7 (495) 620 00 09 Fax: +7 (495) 620 03 60E-mail: [email protected] http://www.tpprf.ru/en/

Department for Work with Foreign Legal Entities and their Representative Offices

Ph: +7 (495) 620 02 62, 620 02 22 Fax: +7 (495) 620 01 70 E-mail: [email protected]

Moscow Chamber of commerce and industryAddress: 38 Sharikopodshipnikovskaya Street, bldg. 1, Moscow, 115088 Ph: +7 (499) 940 33 12 Fax: +7 (495) 675 03 16 E-mail: [email protected]

Main Administration for Service to the Diplomatic Corps (GlavUpDK)

Address: 20 Prechistinka Street, Moscow, 119034 Ph: +7 (495) 637 23 26 Fax: +7 (495) 637 31 71 E-mail: [email protected] http://www.updk.ru

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MOSCOW VOCABULARY

This section of the magazine - “Moscow Vocabulary” – was born of remembering … Ronald Reagan, who appeared to be a fan – and collector - of Russian proverbs and sayings. Well, and we would like to guide you into a world of Russian idioms – just as bright and colorful.

ПАЛЬЦА В РОТ НЕ КЛАДИ – pal’tsa v rot ne kladi.

(Don’t put your finger in his/her mouth)

Explanation: One must be on one’s guard with this man because he’s likely to take advantage of another’s false step

ПОЛОЖИТЬ кого-либо НА ОБЕ ЛОПАТКИ – polozhit na obe lopanki.

(To put someone on both his shoulder-blades)

Explanation: To defeat an opponent in an argument, competition, contest

С ОТКРЫТЫМ СЕРДЦЕМ – s otkrytym s'ertsem.

(With an open heart)

Explanation: To treat someone or do something frankly, openly

С ЛЁГКИМ СЕРДЦЕМ – s l’okhim s’ertsem.

(With a light heart)

Explanation: To do something free from discomfort, anxiety

РАЗБИВАТЬСЯ В ЛЕПЕШКУ – razbivattsa v l’ep’oshku.

(To smash oneself into a flat cake)

Explanation: To do next to impossible

ДУША НАРАСПАШКУ – dusha na raspashku.

(One’s soul is open)

Explanation: To be candid, sincere

Pict

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ia S

aifu

lina


ОДНА НОГА ЗДЕСЬ ДРУГАЯ ТАМ – odna noga zd’es drugaya tam.

(One foot is here, the other is there)

Explanation: To do something very quickly

КАК СНЕГ НА ГОЛОВУ – kak sneg na golovu.

(Like snow onto the head)

Explanation: To appear or arrive suddenly and unexpectedly

ВСТАВАТЬ С ПЕТУХАМИ – vstavat’ s petukhami.

(To get up with the cocks)

Explanation: To rise very early in the morning

НАСОЛИТЬ кому-либо – nasolit’.

(To salt someone)

Explanation: To do someone a bad turn

ЗАДАТЬ ПЕРЦУ кому-либо – zadat’ pertsu.

(To give pepper)

Explanation: To punish someone

ЗОЛОТЫЕ РУКИ – zolotyye ruki.

(Golden hands)

Explanation: A master of one’s craft


This was an important question for me as it is always difficult to gauge how management are performing and how much they are liked or disliked by employees; and employees typically feel anxiety about discussing any issues they may have about their superiors.

Chapter 23

What can you say about the way you are managed? On a daily basis? and on a month-to-month basis?

BOOKSHELF

ALL FINE”Happy, adequate”…”Likes the style and approach, good balance – has main direction but she is choosing how to get there”…”Good to have one-on-one meetings and feels Nadya’s authority and professionalism with clients with issues and in the office – she is very clear with telling people where they need to improve and Di-ana’s management occasionally”…”Fine, James is a good supervi-sor – they asked him to be flexible and not a micro-manager and he isn’t”…”Perfect with Margarita – she is open and honest with good and bad work, she corrects Uliana and guides her. Quarter-ly meetings and “Teas with Teri” are good – makes everyone feel connected”…”Lucky to have good managers, Polina and Directors

on different projects, Directors have to deliver for clients, Diana too but she is in a general role (quarterly reviews).”…”Happy – likes James and Teri”…”Diana: great, and more management”…”Happy to work with James on how to work with clients and write difficult emails, also happy to work with Sofiya as valuable advice”…”SDS is a wonderful manager, James is a great manager”…”Directors up-date work regularly, likes working for Nadya – she does not cause anyone stress, but also is clear with targets and goals – likes her style of management”…”Directors do a great job day to day – all know what she is doing”…”Results are managed in a democratic way, not bureaucratic - but still controlled”…”Very wisely – en-courages best results and goes over mistakes”…”Likes it, Diana and Boris are supportive and communicative. But thinks KPIs need to be looked at”…”Angela is a very strong manager and puts exact


goals, aims and priorities and she is very helpful – not just giving orders”…”Likes Angela – very happy and she learns a lot”...”Likes Nadya as a manager, she is loyal to everyone and explains why to do it”…”Monday meetings and Friday reports are good and push him – he is self-motivated”…”Likes it, likes that it is fast when needed”…

I was very pleased to hear that the majority of our team is very happy with our management and the style of management within the company. This is a very important element in at-tracting, and keeping, good people with us, and grooming oth-ers to join our management ranks in the future.

Overall, I think it is fair to say that our management team is very open and hands-on and that they approach all issues and meetings with care, preparation and research, and profession-alism. It is also good to hear that some of our managers have been flexible in their approach to supervising the team in the way they need to be. We have always had, and tend to hire, a mature team, in terms of their attitude, style and approach to their careers and their responsibilities at Staffwell, and I think that the responses here illustrate that.

Employees want:

•One-on-one meetings with their management; •Management to not over manage, when appropri-ate;•Management that guide, and are open and honest with criticism and praise;•One-on-one meetings with the company’s CEO, on occasion;•Help from management on how to work effectively with clients, and how to write proper e-mails - inter-nally and to clients;•A good digital CRM system that is capable of holding them to task;• Their management and colleagues to keep the team on top of on-going projects;•A style of management that combines control with democratic aspects; • Supportive and communicative management; • KPIs to reflect the current market situation;• Strong and helpful management that deliver clear goals and priorities with a lucid rationale;•Management that are loyal to the Company and to the team;•Management that are quick to respond to issues or inquiries; and• Pro-active management that push an individual or the team to deliver, when needed.

FREQUENCY“Weekly, Friday meetings – Director updates”…”Contact with Diana several times a week –all is good”…”Month-to-month or weekly – do not need day-to-day”…

Frequency of meetings is an important aspect of manage-ment, and meetings that are either too frequent or not fre-quent enough, can be de-motivating to staff. It is vital to find the right balance.

If we are doing things correctly we should be running the following types of meetings: a weekly meeting regarding cli-ent updates on projects currently running; a monthly sale’s meeting; a monthly Consultant’s team meeting regarding their results and their work-in-progress; and a quarterly meeting to review, assess, and track their annual progress-to-date.

Daily management is not needed and I decided to speak to management to ensure this was not happening. The recruit-ment business is quite fast-paced and the team and manage-ment need time to focus on their work in order for us to pro-vide the required results to our clients on their projects.

Employees want:

•Weekly, monthly and quarterly meetings; and• To not have daily meetings.

NOT MANAGED“Day-to-day not managed, month-to-month is just review but not managed; would like more dialogue and discussion, but is also self-motivated, but would love to share more with someone”…”Managed fine, fills in reports, given freedom, does not need management – just room to deliver”…”Prefers day-to-day management. For team mem-bers and Polina needs weekly results meeting on her results”…”In all honesty I do not feel that I am managed, I know what needs to be done and get on with it. I do believe I have a lot more to offer in a wider real sales management role”…”Polina for banking, nobody for pharma – feels lost, but system is clear overall”…”Very efficient but not clear who manages (Directors, Polina or Diana?); perhaps sev-eral managers?”…”Updates system works well but Staffwell has au-tonomous team that can work independently and without a lot of supervision which she thinks is very good”…”Does not see Albert as a motivator or leader – she is self-motivated”…”Guidance, not manage-ment – likes this soft approach”…”Not managed, but happy”…

In a few topics addressed above, it was satisfying for me to hear that the team felt they were managed well. However, here there are one too many comments that point to our lack of good management in certain areas, and this raised a real cause for me to be concerned.

We have several people commenting here from our front office team, who do not feel they are managed at all by their supervisor, and two people who do not even seem to know who their direct report is. A few people also feel their monthly meetings are just reviews of their results without much discussion, motivation, guidance, or leadership. These are training and development issues that I made a note to look further into.


BOOKSHELF

As CEO of Staffwell, these are issues in which I must share some of the blame. We spend a lot of our time, focus and money on training the professional staff, but overlook the corporate need to have properly trained and developed man-agement. At times, we falsely assume that if people have had prior management experience that they will be proficient in that task - often without regularly assessing their perfor-mance.

I made a note of all the comments here and decided to per-sonally look into options for improving the performance of our management team. I also noted the desire of one of our top Directors to move into Sales Management for us – something to take into serious consideration as he has done well and I believe he is ready.

Employees want:

•Managers to be prepared for review meetings and to offer sound professional advice, guidance and leadership during monthly reviews;•Management to pay equal attention to each individual on the team, not just a select few; and• To be promoted when they feel they are ready and have earned it.

BETTER NOW“Great! The only bad manager was Robert”…”Trust, mutual respect, at first thought Diana was too much on the side of the Consultant’s team (Nastya and cheating) – all is good now”…”Adam had a differ-ent management style but he liked that too – he was very demanding and watched every step and move – which kept Ivan at attention, but now the style of Diana is more democratic and more successful for our company”…

Robert was not the greatest General Manager for us, and we let him go before his probation period ended. I gave Robert very simple tasks to carry out while I went on my annual ex-tended Summer holiday: learn our business and about our cli-ents by going out with our Directors team on a bi-weekly ba-sis; sit among the front office team to watch over them; and get to know the staff better.

I came back from my holiday and learned from several Direc-tors that not only did he not go out into the field with our Di-rector’s team as often as I requested, but he almost never sat with the team. Instead, he stayed in his office with the door closed surfing the Internet for personal use most of the time. He was a nice guy and I am a nice person and a fair CEO, but I also have a business to run.

Adam was a firm General Manager and had a good four-year run with us. Adam’s stern handling of the team was a good counter-balance to my friendly, light-hearted and out-going personality with everyone. However, I was strict with Adam on a consistent basis, on the goals and direction I wanted for

the company, which enabled him to carry out his responsibili-ties - without confusion as to what needed to be done, or any bureaucracy in getting it done.

Diana is our current Commercial Director in charge of leading our front office team, having been promoted from a Director role in our Sales Team. I like her and believe in her potential, but fear she is over-loaded - as she has taken on some areas of responsibility outside of her direct remit. I also need more time to work with her and to get to know her better. However, I am glad she is well-liked and viewed as having a democratic management style.

Employees want:

•General management that are visible and truly work hard for the company, not sit behind closed doors and attend to their personal matters; •Management that treat all members of their team fairly and with respect; and•Management that is firm but also democratic in style.

COULD BE BETTER“Albert is the manager, but he is not right for the Consultants – they need to be managed by a top Consultant or higher. Polina would be a great manager for Consultants, she understands all”…

Our Directors work independently in selling our recruitment services to clients. They then update our clients on any work-in-progress, and many other areas of the sales cycle that we have. They are also responsible for: managing and leading any junior Directors under them and in their industry areas of ex-pertise; managing and leading the Consultant’s team working in the same areas of expertise; and managing and leading any Consultants in the company who might be assigned to work on various recruitment projects in other industry or occupa-tional areas of focus.

On occasion, the Consultant’s team feels that the Directors are not the best overall managers for them, and this is not the first time I have heard this. Perhaps it is time for a change. Po-lina is one of our top Directors and she wants to move up and contribute more. Also, she was formerly a Consultant, so she knows that job and the issues the team encounter. Our Com-mercial Director manages both our Director’s and Consultant’s teams, but I feel there is room for everyone, and there is room for change.

Employees want:

•Management that is suitable for them (and sometimes the current management is not suitable); and •Management that have come up through the ranks and that really understand and respect them, and un-derstand their role and issues. ■



The show was a part of the second Big Moroccan Festi-val, which took place in Moscow in November. The main objective of the festival was to introduce city residents to Moroccan products. The first step in this direction, which the city authorities took last year, turned out to

be a great success. After the festival, the assortment of products from Morocco expanded considerably at local supermarkets. “Out of 100 various agricultural products we brought in last year, 50% became staples in supermarkets in Moscow,” says Zahra Maafiri, head of the Moroccan Center for Export promotion. Maafiri brought up these numbers during the business breakfast “Russia-Morocco: century-long traditions and new opportuni-ties for business cooperation,” which was organized by Kommer-sant and took place at the Four Seasons hotel.

The speakers pointed out that the lion’s share of Russian imports from Morocco are currently fruits and vegetables - mandarins,

If the majority of Muscovites used to have trouble understanding what couscous is, the number of people who adore this delicious oriental dish is certainly starting to climb. The number of volunteers who wanted to try couscous during the cooking show at Dorogomilovsky market, at least, was quite high.

peaches, strawberries, potatoes, tomatoes. But Moroccan pro-ducers are ready to expand the range of products to include sweets and fish (wild-caught, not farm-raised). Another priority for the country is the export of olives and olive oil – this is one of the bullet points on the long-term agricultural development program in Morocco.

As many people know, the Russian government imposed an em-bargo on certain food products from the EU, US, Canada, Austra-lia and Norway in the beginning of August. The embargo affected imports of fruit, vegetables, and milk and meat products. At the same time, the Russian Federal Service for Veterinary and Phyto-sanitary Surveillance started negotiating with countries in Latin America and the Middle East regarding the launch or expansion of export programs for these food products. All participants of the business breakfast were convinced that both Russia and Mo-rocco would benefit from increasing direct trade volumes.

Georgy Petrov, the Vice President of the Russian Federation Chamber of Commerce and Industry, brought up an interesting figure during the discussion on trade and economic relations be-tween our countries. He said that, aside from oil and gas prod-ucts, Russia also supplied Morocco with grain – it accounts for more than 10 percent of exports. He also pointed out that our relations with Morocco should not, of course, be limited to trade and tourism – it is necessary to seek opportunities for invest-ment cooperation across different spheres. ■

NOTHING VENTURED

The way to investment is through the stomachThe Russian Capital Hosts Moroccan Festival

The average American will always respond to the question “How are you?” with “Great!” A Russian, on the other hand, will never give a one-word answer – a Russian will tell you, in detail, exactly how they are doing that day. Why?

A lot of foreigners think that Rus-sians aren’t very friendly. This isn’t true. As a matter of fact, it’s hard to find a nation of people who like to socialize as much as Russians

do. To be fair, it can be difficult for a Rus-sian to simply say hi to a stranger – the ba-sic “Hello,” that is. But if contact has been made, there is nothing you can do to stop a Russian – they will never stop talking!

For example, a Russian will answer the ques-tion “How are you?” (which a Westerner will usually give a one-word response to) with a detailed explanation of how things are ac-tually going – what happened and whether or not it was a good thing. Sometimes the urge to talk is so strong that people spend the first hour at work discussing their lives before they actually get down to business. “I suddenly understood why everybody is so poor in Russia,” noted the writer Lev No-vozhenob, “It’s because silence is golden.”

It’s also worth mentioning that Russians do not have any topics that are considered ta-boo during a conversation. Russians can, for example, inquire how much money you make – a subject that is usually off-limits in the West. “They will ask you anything they are curious about, ask for advice or tell you what they think you should do regardless of whether or not you want their opinion. They don’t make much of a distinction between people they know and complete strangers, or at least they get over that barrier very quick-ly,” says philologist Alla Sergeeva. According to her, there is no class, social, professional or age differences that are taken into consid-eration in a conversation between two Rus-sians. Europeans who are unprepared can be at a loss when they encounter such casual familiarity, unexpected questions, and over-sharing. For the average European, this kind of communication takes time. But if a Euro-pean does find themselves in this situation, it’s best not to act put off by what’s happen-

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ing a thaw, at nine o'clock one morning, a train on the Warsaw and Petersburg rail-way was approaching the latter city at full speed.” Yes, Prince Lev Myshkin and mer-chant Parfyon Rogozhin met on the train, which is where Rogozhin first talks about the dazzling beauty Nastassya Filippovna. A lot of novels and stories follow a similar storyline – even today! There is a meet-ing during a trip, a heart-to-heart that can change a person’s entire life – the universal story of Russian literature.

It is no wonder that Russians value words – both written and spoken – more than perhaps any other nation. But this doesn’t mean that people will believe every word that comes out of your mouth. If there is no action to back up what you’re saying, disap-pointment follows. Remember how popu-lar Mikhail Gorbachev was in the beginning of glasnost and perestroika, how admired for his ability to speak frankly? It was this same frank speech that cost him his popu-larity later, because his words were never backed up by actions! As the popular Rus-sian saying goes, “Nothing exhausts more than empty talk.” ■

ing. Otherwise, Russians may take you to be arrogant and conceited. Russians do not like these qualities and people, and may judge you if you don’t want to socialize.

It seems that Russians are ready to talk to each other just about anywhere – on the street, in the café, at the office, on the bus…but there is one place where you surely won’t be able to avoid a conver-sation: during a long trip on the train or plane. “You may not want to talk and you may even make it obvious that you don’t want to talk, but ultimately you have to play by the rules,” Alla Sergeeva says, “The long trip with nothing to do, the monotony, the limited amount of space – all of these things will serve to lift the psychological barrier between you and a stranger and will make him or her unusually talkative.” In her opinion, this was picked up on by Russian writers a long time ago, which is why so many plotlines in classical Russian novels follow this very scenario. Where, for example, did Anna Karenina meet her lover, Count Vronsky? On the train. And how does Fyodor Dostoyevsky’s The Idiot begin? “Towards the end of November, dur-

meet count Vronsky?


“We are paying one of the highest prices for the sanctions that were imposed on Russia, and the counter-sanctions,” said the Mayor of Latvia’s capital Nils Ušakovs on the eve of the opening of Days of Moscow in Riga, “Moreover, Latvia has lost over 1 million Russian tourists and Russians have stopped buying real estate on the Baltic coast.”

The fact that the authorities stopped the Alexan-drov Ensemble from entering the country was also discouraging to Mr. Ušakovs. “We are unsure that the people of this ensemble can offer us a com-pletely neutral event without a political agenda,” said Latvia’s Minister of Culture Dace Melbārde.

Even so, in spite of all of this, Days of Moscow were held successfully in Riga. A third of the city’s residents attended the events – both Rus-sians and Latvians. Take Zurab Tsereteli’s exhibi-tion, for example, which was organized by the Moscow Museum of Modern Art and the Russian Academy of Arts. Thousands of Riga residents at-tended the event.

In response to the question of what the most im-portant thing about art is to an artist, Tsereteli

NEIGHBORS


Riga successfully hosted Days of Moscow

In spite of everything, mutual interest has not subsided

Sergey Cheryomin pointed out that Moscow and Riga are old partners with a long history of mutually ben-eficial coopera-tion.

replied: “Love, love and relaying all the multiple facets of love.” When the artist appeared in public, the exhibition visitors rewarded him with rounds of applause.

The exhibition in Riga featured 40 works by Zurab Tsereteli, which included both color and black-and-white silkscreens, as well as unique pieces completed using the cloisonné technique. Latvian visitors had the opportunity to see both well-known exhibits and pieces that are rarely exhib-ited. On opening day, the artist held a workshop for school children in the Riga Congress Center.

The Moscow House in Riga put together a grand celebration for fans of Russian cinema, featuring a screening of the new film by Stanislav Govorukhin The End of a Beautiful Era.

“Even back in Russia very few people have seen this film,” head of the Moscow House Yuri Si-lov told Capital Ideas, “The screening room was packed. Both Russians and Latvians applauded Govorukhin.”

Still, the main event of the Days of Moscow in the Latvian capital was the business forum Moscow-Riga 2015: New Opportunities for Growth. Forum participants, which included many famous politi-cians, businessmen, economists and journalists from the Baltic States, discussed issues relevant to cooperation between the two capitals, ways to improve the business climate, and attract invest-ments into the economies of the two mega-cities.

“The interest entrepreneurs and politicians took in the forum speaks to the fact that the crisis


The business forum "Moscow-Riga 2015: New Opportunities for Growth" became the main event of the Days of Mos-cow in the Latvian capital.

What is the best way to attract investments to Moscow and Riga? This is question round table par-ticipants tried to answer.

between the EU and Russia, between Latvia and Russia, will subside and eventually come to an end,” Nils Ušakovs said, cheerfully, “This is what we are all waiting for.”

Riga’s mayor thinks that when there is finally peace and agreement, all of Latvia’s closest EU partners – Lithuanians, Estonians and Finns – will be competing for a place on the Russian market. “We want to help Latvian business today so that we have a good place to start from in Russia. We hope that Moscow entrepreneurs will not lose in-terest in Riga either,” Nils Ušakovs said.

The head of the Russian Delegation – Minister of the Moscow Government and Head of Department for Foreign Economic Activity and International Relations (DVMS) Sergey Cheryomin – stressed that both capitals are long-term partners with well-established traditions of mutual cooperation.

“As representatives of a large mega-city, we think that if we do not continue to strengthen economic, humanitarian and cultural ties, relations between our countries and our cities will deteriorate,” Mr. Cheryomin noted, “The business community is the foundation on which political ties are built. We are trying to attract investments to Moscow and use all the knowledge, experience and innovative so-lutions in urban development you can offer. We do all of this solely in the interests of the residents of the biggest mega-city in Russia.”

According to official data, Latvia placed 53rd on the list of Moscow partners in terms of trade volumes in 2013, and 54th in 2014. Trade turnover between organizations registered in Moscow and Latvian partners decreased by 15.9% in 2014 compared

to 2013, amounting to $303.3 million. According to data from the first half of 2015, trade turnover compared to the same period in 2014 decreased by 1.7 times and amounted to $90.8 million.

The head of the DVMS expressed hope that the forum will help participants understand and ap-preciate the effort that the Moscow government and the Russian government are putting into cre-ating favorable conditions for developing mutu-ally beneficial collaborations.

At the forum, Sergey Cheryomin presented the investment opportunities the Russian capital has to offer to the participants and guests. The minis-ter stated that, according to plans put together by the Moscow authorities, 2,500 square kilometers of new territory will be developed in the next 10-15 years. The area will house over 100 million square meters of residential, office and manufacturing real estate. The development of the Moscow Riv-er has also become an important project, projects on the development of transport infrastructure have already been implemented and an intelligent city transport system has been created. Moscow is always ready to share its intelligent and inter-active technologies with our colleagues in Riga. The minister also said that the construction of a third interchange circuit with 17 major transport interchange hubs is another ambitious project. The renovation of industrial zones, which take up a total area of 20,000 hectares in Moscow, will also be significant. There is also the task of restor-ing and renovating parks, creating pedestrian ar-eas and reconstructing Moscow streets. “Our goal is to preserve the city’s cultural image, to make it more recognizable and accessible to pedestrians,” Sergey Cheryomin said.

NEIGHBORS


The exhibition in Riga included 40 works Zurab Tsereteli brought to the Latvian capital, includ-ing unique pieces completed using the cloisonné technique.

Sergey Cheryomin noted that the decision to cre-ate a medical cluster in Moscow with participation from foreign specialists has already been made. He invited Latvian companies to participate in this project and to localize production in Moscow.

A cooperation agreement between the Latvian and Moscow Chambers of Commerce was signed in the City Hall. The document was signed by the Senior Vice President of the Moscow Chamber of Commerce and Industry Vladimir Platonov and Chairman of the Board of the Latvian Chamber of Commerce Janis Endzinsh.

A meeting between the leaders of Russian orga-nizations in Latvia with the heads of the Moscow Center for Humanitarian and Business Coop-eration with Compatriots Abroad – the Moscow House of Compatriots – took place on the side-lines of Days of Moscow in Riga.

“The Russian capital maintains contact with our compatriots constantly. This is in spite of the economic challenges that impacted a lot of pro-grams in Moscow this year. This year alone, the city government allocated 252 million rubles for working with Russians who keep in contact with their motherland even after moving abroad,” said Vladimir Lebedev, Director of the Moscow House of Compatriots.

Mr. Lebedev asked those who came to make pro-posals during the meeting. He asked those present to not forget that the priorities for the allocation of funds remains the same – organizing days of Russian culture, camps for children and students, anti-fascist activities, support for WWII veterans and support for labor veterans.

The largest and most interesting proposals included the following: the establishment of a museum house dedicated to the famous Soviet sculptor Vera Mukh-ina (who was born and lived in the Latvian capital) in Riga; a monument to Mother Maria (Skobtsova), who was born in Riga and was killed by Nazis in the Ravensbrück concentration camp; preserving the memory of the prominent architect Francesco Bar-tolomeo Rastrelli from the Late Baroque era, who was born in Italy, studied in France and worked in Russia and Latvia for a long time (jointly with the mayor’s offices in Riga, Paris and Rome).

There are about 120 non-profit organizations for Russian compatriots currently active in Latvia. For comparison’s sake, there are ten times more similar Latvian organizations. Russian-speaking citizens make up 37 percent of Latvia’s population (about 700,000 people). ■


It so happens that my history with Latvia dates all the way back to the 20th century. In the 1970s, I had my first training here on the vessels of the Latvian Shipping Company. Latvia is a beautiful country that is home to hard-working, talented people. In order to understand them better, I have been learn-ing Latvian since 2008, when I was first appointed Ambas-sador to this country. As a diplomat, I think that relations be-tween Russia and Latvia and between Riga and Moscow have a bright future ahead.

Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Russian Federation to Latvia

OUR INTERVIEW

Alexander Veshnyakov:

I’m learning latvian


The Days of Moscow in Riga is one of the ways in which the close ties that, in spite of everything, bind our two capitals to-gether are demonstrated. It is worth remembering that there is a lot of instability in the world right now, and our opponents are doing everything in their power to further complicate rela-tions between Russia and the European Union.

“At the peak of the crisis, making the economic sanctions against Russia even stricter demonstrates that mutually beneficial coop-eration with Latvia should be continued,” the head of the Rus-sian delegation and Minister of the Moscow Government Sergey Cheryomin said at the opening of the business forum in Riga.

We hosted the Days of Moscow at this time because of the personal stance Riga’s Mayor Nils Ušakovs took. “It is ex-

tremely important to us,” he says, “to maintain friendly ties between the two capitals, because the crisis between the EU and Russia will be over sooner or later.”

The Mayor of Riga will be turning 40 soon. He is one of the youngest and most influential politicians in Latvia. He is also the first Russian mayor of the Latvian capital. Ušakovs is ex-tremely popular in the country right now and, according to the Constitution, can run for President in a year.

As a side note, I’d like to point out that the Moscow Govern-ment is also sticking to its word: cooperation continues, and is even expanding, with just about every European capital. A lot of international projects are still being implemented in Mos-cow with participation of foreign capital from the best, most well known companies from all over the world.

Journalists often ask me to name specific organizations and people who do the most to maintain peace and harmony in society, to maintain friendly ties between Russia and Latvia. I always name the Moscow House in Riga, which has been headed by Yuri Silov for the past 10 years. This House has be-come a true home for thousands of Russian compatriots liv-ing in the Latvian capital. There is a wonderful movie theatre equipped with the latest technology, a big Russian restaurant, comfortable rooms for hosting seminars and conference, as well as a big bookstore that is supplied with new Russian lit-erature directly from Moscow. The House exists with support from the Moscow government.

Who is all of this being done for? For all of those bound to-gether by the Russian language. Russian is still very popular in Riga. There are even studies on this, which show that over 60 percent of the capital’s residents speak Russian at home.

We are also friends with the Moscow House. In February, Rus-sian embassy employees usually celebrate their professional holiday (Diplomat’s Day) here. We want people in Latvia to know and understand what exactly we do here. Recently, we celebrated a national holiday here – Russian Unity Day. We are also going to have Christmas and a New Year celebration here: Grandfather Frost will be travelling here from Veliky Ust-yug on a special invitation.

The Russian holidays, concerts and artistic events at the Mos-cow House are attended by Latvians as well as our compatri-ots and Russian-speaking residents.

During the Days of Moscow, Russian students who live in Latvia were granted merit-based “Mayor of Moscow Scholar-ships.” This was a big deal for the students and their parents. 60 young people from various regions of the country received scholarships. The Moscow scholarships are a significant help, especially for those who truly need it. Although they don’t amount to much in euros, these scholarships give young peo-ple the opportunity to focus on their studies without thinking about how to pay their bills. I know people who would not be able to get a higher education without monetary help from the Moscow Government. ■


This year marks 80 years since the five-point stars replaced the two-headed eagles atop of the towers of the Moscow Kremlin. Today, these stars are among the most well-known symbols of the Russian capital. Few people know, however, the long story of how these stars ended up on the towers.

TRAVEL The secrets behind the Kremlin stars

The Eagle is a proud bird

Before the five-point stars appeared at the Kremlin, the Kremlin towers were adorned with two-headed eagles – they key symbol of the Russian empire. The first ea-gles appeared around 1600, and the last one showed up atop the Spassky tower in 1912. All of the birds were as-

sembled from separate parts held together bolts, and then gilded.

It may seem that the Bolsheviks, who hated any and all symbol of the “old regime,” would have taken down the eagles as soon as they got the chance.

Not so.

The eagles continued to adorn the Kremlin towers until 1935, although the authorities started to contemplate taking them down in 1930. Back then, the authorities sent a an official let-ter to the artist Igor Grabar, asking him to assess the historical

value of the double-headed eagles. In his response, the artist indicated that the eagles are not to be considered monuments and therefore should not be protected by the state.

The protocol from the CEC meeting of the USSR, dated 12.13.1931, states the following: there is a proposal to include 95,000 RUB, the cost of taking down the eagles from the Kremlin towers, into the budget for 1932. It was proposed to replace the eagles with the state emblem, but there was not enough money in the bud-get in 1932. Those who want to see what the two-headed eagles looked like atop the Kremlin towers can do so by searching for Grigory Aleksandorv’s legendary film “Circus.” 21 minutes in, there is a shot of the double-headed eagle on top of the Spassky tower.

NKVD’s Special Project

The final decision to take down the double-headed ea-gled was made by Politburo in the summer of 1935. The TASS report states: “The Council of the People’s Com-missars of the USSR, the Central Committee of the All-Union Communist Party (b) decided to take down 4

eagles (Spasskaya tower, Nikolskaya tower, Borovitskaya tower and Troitskaya tower), along with 2 eagles from the Historical Museum, by November 7, 1935. It has also been decided to in-stall five-point stars on the 4 Kremlin towers by this date.”

The commandant of the Kremlin and NKVD were responsible for accomplishing this task. It was said that Joseph Stalin him-

The secrets behind the Kremlin stars


self took part in developing the sketches. Officially, the task to design and manufacture the first Kremlin stars was assigned to two Moscow factories and studios of the Central Aerohydrody-namic Institute (TsAGI).

The famous designer and academician Fedor Fedorovsky de-veloped the sketches for the stars. It turned out, however, that drawing the stars was a lot easier than making them. The stars were made out of stainless steel, and then covered in gilded cop-per sheets.

The memo in which Lazar Kaganovich agrees to allocate 67.9 kg of gold for the gilded sheets has also been preserved. Both sides of each star were decorated with the state emblem – the Hammer and Sickle that weighed 240 kilograms and adorned with precious stones: crystal, amethyst, alexandrite, topaz and aquamarine. The total number of precious stones amounted to over 7,000 pieces, and fifty of the best jewelers in the country were summoned to work with them.

This would have all been well and good, but the stars turned out to be too heavy – the Kremlin towers had to be reinforced just so they could be installed. Moreovoer, the stars turned out to be dif-ferent both in the way they were decorated and in terms of size. The star atop of the Spasskaya tower was highlighted by the rays coming from the star’s center. (Today, this star sits atop of the Rechnoi Vokzal building in Moscow).

The Troitskaya tower star had the same rays, but shaped like spears. The Borovitskaya tower had two contours, one inside the other, while the Nikolskaya tower had no pattern at all. The dis-tance between the rays of the Spasskaya and Nikolskaya towers was 4.5 meters, while the distance with Troitskaya and Borovits-kaya towers totaled 4m and 3.5m, respectively.

Installing these stars on the Kremlin towers turned out to be a big challenge – the type of machinery needed to mount the stars simply didn’t exist. Specialists from Stalprommekhanizatsiya re-

solved the issue by designing and building a unique crane for each tower. A console was installed through the window of a tower, and then used to install the crane.

It may seem unbelievable, but Gorky Park hosted a presenta-tion to introduce Muscovites to the stars before they were mounted on the towers. The stars were placed on special pedestals with red bunting and projectors. According to those who witnessed the presentation, the precious stones shone in a myriad of different colors. On October 24, 1935, the first star was mounted on the Spasskaya tower. The next day, a five-point star appeared on top of the Troitskaya tow-er On October 26 and 27, two more stars were mounted on the Nikolskaya and Borovitskaya towers.

The First Attempt

N onetheless, regardless of the efforts of special-ists who created the towers, the first attempt was unsuccessful. By 1937, the precious stones that decorated the stars suddenly stopped shin-ing. It turned out that the soot and smog from

the big city, as well as unfavorable weather conditions caused the gems to darken. The stars themselves were also too big and did not fit in well with the architecture of the Kremlin.

Something had to be done!

After lamenting the money and time spent in vain and cal-culating new, optimal sizes for the stars, the government or-dered new ruby stars. This time, they added another star for the Vodovzvodnaya tower. Semi-precious stones placed in-side of stars made them glow. It was crucial to produce stars that would be able to withstand corrosion and would also be easy to clean from the outside. Unfortunately, the second at-tempt was also a challenge.


TRAVEL

The thing is that the legendary ruby glass was made with se-lenium and gold additives. But when the first batch of material was taken outside, it turned out that the glass looked almost black in bright daylight. In order the remedy the situation, spe-cialists proposed to add an inside layer of milky-colored glass. This time, the stars lit up like real rubies.

The powerful 5,000-watt lamps also caused a lot of problems – they could easily get too hot and cause the ruby glass to crack or burst. Huge ventilators with capacity of 600 cubic meters of air per hour were used to cool them down. Those who like to save on electricity would be interested to learn that the Kremlin lamps can never burn out because there are two filaments. If one burns out, the other continues working. The lamps, along with the ventilators, are checked tow times a day. There are also two ventilators per star.

Brighter than Before

In spite of the fact that the creators of the ruby stars tried to take every nuance into account, there have been sev-eral instances when the stars went out.

The first time this happened was during WWII. Because the lights were a great navigation tool for enemy aircraft,

the authorities put the lights out, covered them in tarp, and painted windows on the walls of the Kremlin. Unfortunately, when the tarp was finally removed, the stars were covered in holes. The stars had to be restored and only appeared back on the towers in March 1946. The renovation work actually made the stars shine brighter, since experts decided to add a third layer of glass, made out of crystal.

The second time the stars went out was in 1996, when the fa-mous director Nikita Mikhalkov turned them off when filming scenes for The Barber of Siberia at night.

The star on top of the Spasskaya tower was hidden from the eyes of Muscovites for a short period of time when it was covered up due to restoration work on the Kremlin’s main tower in 2014. That year, there were many rumors that the star would be replaced with the double-headed eagle after restoration work is complete. Needless to say, these rumors turned out to be false. The lamps in the star were replaced with metal-halide ones, which only consume a fifth of the energy the star used to require. ■


Fatal attraction or tango nights

LIFE&CULTURE

The time before the New Year can be hectic, and we seldom have time to enjoy the beautiful things in life. This is a shame, because there are a lot of interesting events happening in Moscow at the end of December. Even after the holidays, the city’s cultural life continues to brim with life.


F ans of classical music have a lot of pleasant surprises coming their way before the New Year. On December 29th, the Tchaikovsky Concert Hall will be hosting a performance by the Mariinsky Theatre Orchestra, directed by

the legendary conductor Valery Gergiev. This unique music collective from St. Petersburg is included in the list of top 20 best orchestras in the world (ac-cording to a poll of the leading music critics from Europe, America and Asia). On December 31st, the same venue will be holding a New Year’s celebration featuring Yuri Bashmet – a brilliant conductor and musician who is considered to be one of the most prominent classical music performers in Russia.

T hose who enjoy ice-skating – one of the most popular sports in Russia – also have a present waiting for them. Many former ice dancers in Russia go on to have brilliant careers, and Ilia Averbukh is one such suc-

cess story: today, he is considered to be a trendset-ter in the genre of ice shows and tours. This winter, Ilia will be presenting his new show – “New Bremen Town Musicians.” The project is set to be a true hit, as some of the most famous ice-skating icons in Russia are involved in the production. Olympic champions Tatiana Navka and Roman Kostomarov are going to be starring as the Princess and the Troubadour. The fact that Tatiana Navka married Vladimir Putin’s press-secretary Dmitry Peskov in an elaborate ceremony in Sochi makes this show even more interesting for the audience.

The show organizers promise original decorations that incorporate new 3D technology, pyrotechnics and circus tricks. Of course, there will also be songs that Russians have known and loved since child-hood: “Beam of the Golden Sun,” “Nothing Better in the World,” and “They Call us Byaki-Buki.” The show will take place at the new VTB Ice Palace in December and January.

T he exhibition dedicated to the 150th an-niversary since the birth of Valentin Se-rov, which opened in the fall, can also be considered to be an important winter event. The artist has been called one of the

founders of modern art in Russia. He has painted dozens of portraits, the most famous of which are “Portrait of the Artist Isaac Levitan,” “Portrait of the Artists Konstantin Korovin,” and “Girl with Peaches.” The exhibition takes up three floors of the Tretya-kov Gallery and has been extremely popular with visitors. During the first week following the open-ing, it attracted over 25,000 of the capital’s guests and residents. The are about 259 works included in the exhibition, many of which have been shipped to Moscow from abroad, including from the Musée d'Orsay in Paris. Aside from paintings, the exposi-

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tion also includes documents, letters and pictures that illustrate the artist’s life story. The exhibition is scheduled to stay open until January 17th, but there is a good chance this date will be extended.

Moscow’s vibrant theatre scene also has a lot to offer. There will be a big premiere of “Musketeers. Saga. Part One.” at the Moscow Art Theatre. The play is the brainchild of Konstantin Bogomolov –

Moscow’s master of scandals and one of the most widely-discussed directors in the city. “The play is based on the famous novel by Alexander Du-mas and the myths surrounding his work,” he says about the play, “However, we aren’t using any of the text itself. The play features a completely new romantic, detective and mystical plot that incorpo-rates the novel’s original characters – D'Artagnan, Athos, Aramis, Porthos, Milady, the King and the Cardinal.”

LIFE&CULTURE


On February 2nd, the Bolshoi Theatre will host the premiere of the legendary ballet "Don Quixote." This famous character has been regularly featured on ballet stages all over the world for almost 150 years – the ballet

was first shown at the Bolshoi Theatre in 1896 and has been a popular hit since. "Don Quixote" is perhaps the only classical ballet that originated in the Bolshoi Thea-tre. Over the years, the ballet has featured famous starts such as Maya Plisetskaya, Natalia Bessmertnova, Mikhail Lavrovsky, Lyudmila Semenyaka, Alexander Godunov, Olga Lepeshinskaya, Asaf Messerer and many others. So who will be dancing this winter? It’s a secret so far, but the lead will be revealed soon.

The Stanislavski and Nemirovich-Danchenko Moscow Academic Music Theatre is going to be hosting the premiere of “Aladdin’s Magic Lamp,” the music for which was written by the famous Italian composer Nino Rota. His name is well-

known to film buffs, as the composer has worked closely with Federico Fellini, Luchino Visconti, Franco Zeffirelli and Francis Ford Coppola. Many people know that Nino Rota wrote the music for the cult classic The Godfather, but few know that he also wrote several operas.

The Vakhtangov Theatre will be showing a new play called “Take the Umbrella, Madame Gau-tier.” Seeing Yulia Borisova – a legendary ac-tress who turned 90 in March – is worth going to see this sad Christmas story. Yulia Borisova’s

fantastic energy always thrills the audience. She is in great shape, and can put many younger stars to shame.

The benefit play for the Vakhtangov prima is a detec-tive story about the search for inheritance. During a big snowstorm, a small group of people gets together in the French Alps: the hotel manager Madame Gautier (who has escaped from her step children as they were taking her to a mental institution), as well as the stepchildren themselves, who are looking for their stepmother.

Many dedicated theatre fans in Moscow want to see another unique actress, Vera Vasileva (who also turned 90 this fall) at the Moscow Satire Theatre. In honor of her anniversary, the program now fea-

tures a new play called “Fatal Attraction,” directed by Andrey Zhitikin. The play is a variation on the famous Hollywood picture Sunset Boulevard. Billy Wilder’s film about the tragedy of forgotten stars won three Oscars and three Golden Globes. The 90-year old star is very excited about this role, especially considering that Vera Vasileva is still quite creative. “I’m not one of those actresses who can star in any role,” the actress said in an interview, “I can’t play a funny old woman, for example. I can’t make the audience laugh in this role and I wouldn’t even know what to do in order for this to happen. It’s not my forte. The character in ‘Fatal Attraction’ was perfect for me: a Hollywood star who has lived a fairly complicated life, who was

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LIFE&CULTURE

somewhat whimsical, could seduce people she didn’t even like that much – has lived the true life or a movie star.”

On February 12th, there is a major event for everybody who truly appreciates tango. The State Kremlin Palace will be hosting a new show called “Astor Piazzolla’s Tango Passion,” which will be accompanied by a symphonic

orchestra. This show is dedicated to the Valentine’s Day. Argentine tango Dancers, who will be travelling from Ar-gentina for the show, will be performing for the Moscow audience. The show organizers have come up with a dress code for the visitors: everybody who comes in a red outfit will receive a special present. The outfit does not necessarily have to be entirely red – just an accessory like a red scarf or purse will be enough. The organizers hope that this dress code will help to create a special atmos-phere: thousands of people wearing red!

On March 8th (International Women’s Day), the State Kremlin Palace will be hosting the annual Valentin Yudashkin fashion show. Showing the spring collection of Russia’s most famous designer at the Kremlin Pal-

ace has already become a tradition. March 8th is al-ways a holiday in Russia – women receive flowers, gifts and greeting cards from friends, family and colleagues. This is why many women consider March 8th to be the most wonderful day of the year – they are treated like goddesses, majestic and overpowering. Women are frequently treated to a night at the restaurant, the theatre or a concert. Yudashkin’s show is an excellent

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choice for men who want to surprise the women they love with something truly unique. Since 2008, all of the city’s fashion connoisseurs have been coming to the show to catch up on the latest trends and see Russia’s biggest pop stars perform together.

March will bring another surprise for all fans of legendary groups from the 90s – the Olympic Stadium will be hosting a show by the Norwegian group A-ha, which used to be popular all over the world. In 1991, the

collective performed at the legendary Marakana sta-dium in front of 198,000 fans – a world record.

When A-ha performed at their last show in Oslo in December 2010, the group’s fans were extremely dis-appointed – the band members claimed they would not perform again in the future. The concert in 2016 will be their first concert in Moscow after the 5-year break. The group announces the release of their new album, Cast in Steel, in March at a press conference in Berlin. The album was released in September 2015.

“Everything just happened naturally,” Pål Waaktaar-Savoy told the press, “Morten Harket just came to my studio and I showed him some tracks I was working on. He would sing over them, and then select the ones he liked until we had a total of 10-12 songs. The great part was that we could work whenever we liked, since we didn’t have any contracts or tours to worry about. It’s like we went back into the 80s, to my parents’ house where we wrote our first songs – just a few instru-ments, the song and the voice.” ■

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Yes, it is a challenge as well. But it is a real opportunity and what is important – it is a reality.

Isn’t it a challenge?

Yes, it is a challenge as well. But it is a real opportunity and what is important – it is a reality.

Andrei Sharonov, Deputy Moscow Mayor for Economic Policy, shared with CAPITAL IDEAS his vision of Moscow as an international financial center

FACE TO FACE

Andrei Sharonov

Moscow never sleeps


LIFE&LEISURE

YAKHROMASports and Entertainment Park

This modern multi-purpose complex is located in Dmitrov district, Moscow Oblast – just 46km outside of MKAD. It is ideal for both family weekends and loud get-togethers of people who want to celebrate on the slopes.

Yakhroma Park will surprise guests with a wide selection of seasonal entertainment and attractions. In the winter, this means snowmobiles and ski slopes of various difficulty levels for both newbies and experienced skiers.

Recreational activities can be combined with relaxation: there is an Aqua center and bathhouse (hammam, caldarium (Roman bath), Finnish sauna, ice fountain, massage, spa).

Slope No. 1 – There are 2 trails for downhill tubing, as well as a baby lift. There is a tube rental spot.Slope No. 2 – A gentle slope for beginners. Length – 250m, height difference – 40m. Baby lift.Slope No. 3 – 2 tracks that share an overpass. Length – 350m, height difference – 40-50 m. There are 2

parallel ski lifts between the tracks.Track 3А – “Stadion”: wide and flat with a drop in the upper part of the slope and a smooth finish.Track 3B – has a steep upper part, which becomes less steep in the middle. Both tracks are meant for ex-

perienced athletes, as they are used for training sessions and competitions (including Russia Cup).Slope No. 4 – There are two different tracks running from the launch pad: “Dlinnaya” and “Lesnaya.” The

total length of the slope is 600-650m, and the height difference is 65m. There is a t-bar lift that transports two people at a time.

Track 4A – wide with smooth transitions, recommended for athletes of various levels.Track 4B – ideal for extreme skiing.

Additionally: There is an ice skating rink with an ice skates rental spot, a center for extreme driving, a plat-form for paintball and strikeball (about 2,000 square meters that can hold up to 200 people at a time).

Address: 46km from MKAD on Dmitrovsky Highway, exit Stepanovo, Yakhroma, Dmitrovsky district, Moscow Oblast

Tel: +7 (495) 981-89-39, fax: +7 (495), 981-89-39 ext. 221 – information center (general inquiries)

Tel: +7 (495) 981-89-38, fax: +7 (495) 981-89-38 ext. 232 – hotel complex (booking)

Website: http://ya-park.ru


You don’t have to book a trip abroad to go skiing or snowboarding in the winter. There are a lot of places

close to Moscow where you can not only hit the slopes, but also relax with your whole family.

Capital Ideas has selected the best ski resorts near Moscow.

LISYA GORAYear-round ski complex

SOROCHANYSports resort


The ski complex is equipped with a modern system that allows management to artificially add snow to the slopes, extending ski season from the end of November to the beginning of April. The tracks are constantly reinforced with special technology. The five slopes are meant for both professionals and beginners.

Slope No.1 – for those who are just starting to explore skiing or snowboarding.Slope 1а – this training slope is intended for beginner skiers and snowboarders. Visitors are only allowed to

enter if accompanied by an instructor. The slope is about 80m in length and the height difference is no more than 20m. The slope is equipped with a baby lift for the convenience of guests.

Slope 2 – the sharp slope in the beginning and a long ramp provide ideal conditions for polishing technique. Moreover, the slope is equipped with a baby lift 300 meters in length.

Slope No.3 – ideal for experienced skiers. The slope is 70m in width and 350m in length. The height differ-ence is 63. Visitors can get to the top of the slope with the help of a one-person saucer-type ski lift.

Slope No.4 – the maximum length is 400m, with a height difference of mover than 65m. The slope is ideal for experienced skiers, snowboarders and true fans of extreme sports. There is enough space to pick up some real speed – the slope is about 80 meters wide!

Tubing slope – this is a special track intended for tubing, about 80m in length.

Additionally: there is a chalet-style hotel and a restaurant that serves original, fusion-style meals.

49km from MKAD on Dmitrovsky Highway, there is a true Swiss suburbia in the Klim-Dmitrov ecologically clean territory of the Dmitrov district. The Sorochany ski resort is one of the most modern sports resorts in the Moscow region. Skiing fans can enjoy mountains up to 225 meters in height, over 10 tracks with height differences of up to 90m, width of up to 70m and length of up to 1,050m.

There are lifts from Austria and Italy are installed on the slopes: two-person and four-person chairlifts, as well as three drag lifts, two baby lifts for snow tubing and a training course for children with a playground.

Slope No.1 – for beginners. Slope No.2 – a relatively steep start and a wide shallow end. The slope is equipped with a drag lift.Slope No.3 – a great slope to practice technique. Even, not steep. There us a slight bend toward the end, and

the slope is equipped with a drag lift.Slope No.3а – an offshoot of slope No.3 to a four-person lift and a new drag lift. A fairly steep but short slope. Slope No.4 – a wide slope with a varying terrain, equipped with a 4-person drag lift. Relatively steep. The

varying terrain (bends and hollows) makes this slope particularly interesting. Slope No.5 – a black slope (by the resort’s standards). First there is a gentle blue section, then a sharp bend

and a black steep section. This slope may be too difficult for beginners. Equipped with a 4-person and drag lifts.

Slope No.6 – split into two parts. If you look down from the top, the right side is red, more even, flat and best for intermediate skiers. The track has a varying terrain – there are slight bends and hollows. The left side (also central) is black and has a significant bend in the beginning, as well as one at the end.

Slope No.7 – a smooth start that transitions to a short, relatively steep section that is great for polishing technique. Equipped with a drag lift.

Slope No.8 – the longest slope that starts at the top of the hill. There is a smooth section first – this is where visitors decide which slope to take (4,5,6,7). If you go straight the whole time, the slope branches off into multiple tracks that run through a scenic forest. The track is not difficult, but is very interesting. Equipped with a 2-person lift.

Slopes No. 9-10 – new slopes that start at the Ski House. One track is straight and the other one spirals down, then branches off. Slope No.9 has a very steep section that can be bypassed. Slope No. 10 branches off into two tracks – f you go straight, the slope won’t change. If you go left, though, you will hit an interesting steep section. These are black slopes by the resort’s standards and are equipped with a two-person lift.

Additionally: there is a playroom for kids who are 3-12 years of age. There is also an ice skating rink for those who enjoy ice skating.

Address: Leonovskoye Highway (700 meters from the Moscow-Nizhny Novgorod highway), Balashikha, Moscow Oblast

Tel: 8-985-210-09-06

Website: http://www.foxrock.su

Address: Kurovo 68, Dmitrovsky district, Moscow Oblast

Tel: +7 (495) 788-85-44, fax: +7 (495) 788-85-42Tel: +7 (495) 788-81-72, fax: +7 (495) 788-81-78 –

accommodation service

Website: http://www.sorochany.ru

FACE TO FACE


LIFE&LEISURE


VOLENSports Park

SHUKOLOVORecreational Center “Leonid Tyagachev Skiing Club”

Over the course of its existence, the park has acquired a great reputation as a popular and trendy place to spend winter and summer holidays. Volen is a real ski town with a developed infrastructure – professional tracks, equipment rentals, a ski school, a hotel and cottages, restaurants, shops and much more.

If you like downhill skiing and snowboarding, but don’t feel like going all the way to the Alps, there is a place just 50km outside of Moscow that you can visit to get your fill of winter sports – the sports park Volen. There are even two places like this, since the park is made up of two complexes – one is located in Yakhroma, and another one is in Stepanovo (4km away from the first complex).

Both complexes have tracks where visitors can show off their skiing and snowboarding skills. Yakhroma has more tracks – there are a total of 14, including 2 training tracks). There aren’t as many in Stepanovo (4 so far), but they are longer and there is a bigger height difference. In Yakhroma, the length is 450 and the height difference is 70m, while in Stepanovo the length is 960m and the height difference is 90m.

All tracks are equipped with lighting and snowmaking systems. Moreover, all tracks also have lifts – there are 11 in Yakhroma (7 drag lifts, 3 baby lifts and 1 conveyor life) and 2 in Stepanovo (two-person chair lifts).

Additionally: the park offers an opportunity to diversify your leisure with the following activities: swimming, fishing, cycling, tennis, table tennis, archery, crossbow and board games (chess, checkers, backgammon).

The oldest ski resort in the Moscow region, which also serves as the training base for Russian national ski and snowboarding teams.

The club is located at the highest point of the Klin – Dmitrov mountain range, 40 km outside of Moscow.

There are 9 ski tracks 46-600m in length located on the 95 ha territory. Slopes No.1, No.4 and No.6 are for beginners, while slopes No.3 and No.5 are for expert skiers. Slope No.5 is 415m long, which makes it the lon-gest slope on the resort. Slope No.2 is the most challenging, and only the most experienced athletes use it. Beginners will appreciate a slope designated for those who are still learning how to ski – it’s equipped with an escalator-type lift. There is a special slope with a baby lift for children. There are five ropeways for the main slopes, along with drag lifts.

There is a snowboard park for snowboarders with jumps and rails. All slopes are equipped with sighting systems. The quality snow-making system makes the winter season at Shukolovo last from November until May. The tracks are well maintained with snow reinforcing technology. The rental equipment inventory is periodically updated with athletic equipment from world-famous brands. Experiences instructors are also available for those who want to sharpen their skills.

Additionally: for those who are into wellness, there is a spa center with a juice bar and other relaxation amenities.

Address: Troitskaya 1, Yakhroma, Dmitrovsky district, Moscow Oblast

Tel: +7 (495) 993-95-02, (495) 993-95-40, +7(495)981-88-94(multi-channel)

Website: http://www.volen.ru

Address: Shukolovo, Dmitrov district, Moscow Oblast.

Tel: +7 (495) 980-79-79

Hotel Tel: +7 (495) 980-79-79, +7 (916) 224-31-93

http://www.shukolovo.ru


City Government Address: 13 Tverskaya Street, Moscow 125032 Ph: +7 (495) 633-51-90 http://www.mos.ru/en/index/php

Moscow Investment Portal

http://www.mosinvest.mos.ru

Moscow Innovation Development Center

Address: Voznesensky Per., 22, Moscow, Business Center Usadba, Ph: +7 (495) 225-92-52 http://en.inno.msk.ru/

Business Protection Headquarters Address: Voznesensky Per., 22 (5th floor), Moscow, Business Center Usadba Ph: +7 (495) 957-05-10 http://dnpp.mos.ru/service/the-headquarters-for-the-protection-of-entrepreneurship/general-information/

Department for Competition Policy Address: 12 Pechatnikov Pereylok, Moscow, 107045 Ph: +7 (495)-957-99-31, +7 (495) 957-99-77 Fax: +7 (495) 957 99 95 E-mail: [email protected] http:// www.tender.mos.ru

useful info

FOOD&DRINK

Cookingwith soulWho said that the story of the famous Normandy-Neman Aviation Regiment is over? Today, it continues in the very center of Moscow, at Blagoveshensky Pereulok 5. There’s just another turn in the plotline!

P erhaps the thing that stands out most when guests first walk into the Nor-mandy-Neman restaurant and bistro is the comfortable atmosphere. Nothing irritates the eye; the warm terracotta

color of the walls both soothes and awakens the appetite. Appetite is the main thing Fabrice Lecoin, the Head Chef of this Moscow restaurant, wants from his visitors. When talking to him, one can’t help think of the famous quote from Pascal Ichak (another French chef), who was brilliantly played by Pierre Richard in the Oscar-winning film Les Mille et une Recettes du Cuisinier Amourex: “Treasure your ap-petite like you treasure your first love!”

Monsieur Lecoin also thinks that all of our prefer-ences, including our culinary preferences, develop when we are still children. “For our entire lives, the things we love eating most are the things our par-ents and grandparents cooked for us,” he says. It comes as no surprise that everything he prepares at Normandy-Neman can best be described as “home-made.” Dishes include salads, cold snacks, pates, soups, meat and fish dishes and desserts.

Fabrice Lecoin:


By the way, Fabrice has been in the culinary world for thirty years. He started as an apprentice at a restaurant not far from Lyon when he was just 16 years old. He liked cooking so much that he decided to learn everything he could about this art form. He ended up getting his degree in culinary arts in Lyon – the well-known gastronomic capital of France. After he completed his education, the young man was immediately recognized for his talent. His first place of employment was at the Michelin restau-rant in Toulouse. Although the restaurant only had one Michelin star, the chef got a good start here.

As Fabrice grew professionally, so did the number of stars in the restaurants where he worked. Monsieur Lecoin also traveled the world and worked abroad, including in French restaurants in the US and Eu-rope. Fabrice first came to Russia’s capital in the summer of 2001. He worked as a chef at various fa-mous restaurants in Moscow until he got a job with the French embassy in Russia.

FOOD&DRINK


In spite of the fact that he had a high-profile job, Fabrice always dreamed about having his own busi-ness. He got the opportunity at the end of 2014, when two Frenchmen with extensive experience on the Moscow market – chef David Desseaux and designer Jean-Michel Cosnuau opened Normandy-Neman in the center of Moscow. “Our restaurant has a French name, but it’s not exclusively French,” Fabrice explains, “After all, we are in Russia. I want both Russian and French guests to visit the restau-rant.”

This philosophy is reflected in the restaurant’s menu. Along with French onion soup, wild Burgundy snails and apple pie with ice cream, it also features Rus-sian favorites such as solyanka, kharcho, pozharski cutlets and blinis. Overall, just about anybody can find something they like at Normandy-Neman. The chef is particularly proud of his specialties: beef on the bone in Bordelaise sauce or steamed lamb with vegetables and spices, for example. The lamb is so


tender and juicy that you can almost eat it with a spoon! The restaurant has also established a tradi-tion of dedicating certain nights to dishes that are local to specific regions in France.

All of the products used in the restaurant are fresh. Normandy-Neman has a contract with several sup-pliers that deliver meat, fish, vegetables and fruit to the restaurant. “Everything is produced domestically, I want local products,” Fabrice says. The restaurant also takes special orders. One time, for example, a client asked for a rooster cooked in wine sauce. Fabrice went

to one of the local markets himself to find the bird he needed. He and his colleagues also carefully inspect all of the products provided by the suppliers.

No matter what kind of dish he is making, Fabrice always makes sure to highlight: “We are not a gas-tronomic restaurant. We make real, homemade food.” So what is the most important thing to Fab-rice when it comes to cooking? “I want the person to get up from the table with a smile,” he says, “and to leave the restaurant in a good mood. I pour my soul into my cooking!” ■

FOOD&DRINK


STRATEGI ES FOR BUSINESS IN MOSCOW · A PROPOS Prince Yuri Dolgorukiy would have been extremely...

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