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Medvedev: Situation in Russia’s economy may be not less complicated against previous year

MOSCOW, January 16, 3:40 /ITAR-TASS/. The situation in Russia’s economy in 2014 may be not less complicated than it was in 2013, Russia’s Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev said in an interview with RBC-TV on Wednesday.

“This year, which has just begun - 2014 - may be not less complicated than 2013 was,” he said.

However, the prime minister said “there are also different forecasts.”

He explained the idea, saying despite the domestic problems in the Russian economy “we to a great extent depend also on the situation in the European and global markets.”

“If it does not improve, it will also affect the Russian economy,” Medvedev said.

Russia should focus on improvement of the business climate, as the country does not have another resource for the economic growth, Medvedev said.

The prime minister confirmed growth opportunities of the rates we say over past ten years had been exhausted.

“However, I am not sure it is too bad,” Medvedev said.

At the time Russia has been hoping only for the energy companies, the extensive growth at the expense of prices for the energy resource, everyone could realise the situation is not endless, he said.

“Then a crisis came, in 2008-2009, and then the recovery growth, which usually lasts for longer than economists would say,” he continued. After this period we can witness a complicated situation in the global economy, which is “almost in recession.”

Russia as a part of the international community, also has been affected, Medvedev said.

“I believe it is not a secret, - we should rely mostly on improvement of the country’s business climate,” the prime minister said. “We simply do not have any other growth resource.”

If the government fails to approach a new quality of the business climate, the country would not be able to develop, he said.

“A new quality of the business climate means everything: not only the big businesses, which really have been development drivers for quite a time, but, and first of all, the small and medium businesses.”

Presently, the input in the country’s GDP from the small and medium businesses is only 20-25 percent, Medvedev said.

“The rest is what is made in other spheres and by major businesses as well.”

All the measures necessary to correct the situation have been undertaken already, he said.

“We only should see to it the measures reach recipients,” Medvedev said. First of all, the small and medium businesses should have access for “good loans and good contracts.”

The prime minister spoke about a new law on the federal contract system.

“This is not a panacea, but still, it offers correct approaches as to how companies of small and medium businesses could get state orders.”

Medvedev is sure if Russia manages to assure access for small and medium companies to that sphere “a rather good and quite quick effect is possible.