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раніше Росія, і ще раніше Радянський Союз виділяли на подібні цілі. Отже ми будемо працювати і
будемо покращувати умови бізнесу, в тому числі і того, про який Ви згадали. Я вважаю, що він є дуже
важливим, він себе добре зарекомендував в Росії, дійсно працює добре та стабільно. Ми задоволені тим,
як він розвивається. І Ви теж можете не сумніватися, що ми будемо шукати способи і можливості його
підтримки.

English (translation)
For the first time in the history of the Forum Russian politician Prime Minister Vladimir Putin will
deliver the key-note speech.
Esteemed participants of the World Economic Forum,
Ladies and gentlemen,
I am grateful to the organisers of the Forum for this opportunity to share with you my considerations
about what is happening in the world economy today, and to tell you about our plans and proposals.
The world today has encountered the first really global economic crisis. Moreover, the speed at which the
crisis manifestations are unfolding is breaking all records.
The current situation is often compared to the Great Depression at the end of the ‘20s and beginning of
the ‘30s in the last century. To be sure, the parallels are actually visible.
Yet, there are principle differences. In the epoch of globalisation, the crisis has affected everyone – all
countries irrespective of their political or economic systems. All of them are in the same boat.
There is, I believe, quite a well-known concept such as “the perfect storm.” That is when the unleashed
natural elements focus in one point of the ocean and continue to build up their destructive force manifold. The
current crisis looks precisely like “the perfect storm.”
Responsible and well-versed people must prepare for such a storm. But even so, it comes unexpectedly.
And that’s what has happened this time. The crisis was actually hanging in midair. However, the majority who
were trying to get a bigger piece of the pie – a billion or one dollar – did not wish to notice the rising tidal wave.
During the past several months, practically any statement that was made on the subject of the crisis began
with rebukes addressed to the USA. I am not going to do that.
I would only like to remind you that only a year ago, from this rostrum, we heard the words of American
representatives about the fundamental stability and cloudless prospects of the US economy. But today, the pride
of Wall Street – the investment banks – have practically stopped existing. For the past year, they have had to
acknowledge losses far exceeding their profits for the past quarter of a century. This example alone reflects the
real state of affairs better than any criticism.
The time has come to see the light. We must calmly, and without gloating, try to look into the deep-lying
causes of what has happened and to try to look into the future.
As we see it, the crisis was triggered by a combination of several factors simultaneously.
This is the collapse of the existing financial system. It is the result of poor quality regulation. And as a
result of this, huge risks were overlooked.
This has been prompted by colossal imbalances that piled up over the recent years. First of all, this
concerns imbalances between financial operations and the fundamental value of assets. This is the result of the
increasing burden on international credits and the sources providing them.
There was a serious malfunction in the very system of global economic growth – namely, when one
regional center endlessly prints money and reaps the benefits; whereas, another center produces not very costly
commodities and saves money that other states have printed.
To this, I can add that in such a system, whole regions of the world, including Europe, found themselves
on the periphery of global economic processes. And this means they were outside the framework of the key
economic and financial decisions.
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