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Russian parliament passes draft to curb foreign investment

Mar 21, 2008, 16:06 GMT

Moscow - Russia's parliament on Friday voted 355 to 3 in favour of draft legislation limiting foreign investment in strategic sectors including oil and gas, publishing, telecoms and fishing, news agency Interfax reported. Under the bill, foreigners are forbidden from buying a significant stake in companies without government approval in industries defined as crucial to national security. Friday's vote brings one step closer to being enacted a law that has drawn criticism at home and provoked concern among foreign investors who fear more state bureaucracy blocking business deals. The Kremlin administration personally oversaw amendments extending the list of sectors viewed as strategic and other fine points of the bill, said Martin Shakkum, head of the Construction and Land Policy Committee, which with the cabinet is sponsoring the law. Shakkum judged Friday that the bill, now in its second reading, would not be seriously revised before the third and final reading after which it will be put before Russia's upper house and President Vladimir Putin to be signed into law. The bill requires foreign investors to seek the approval of a government commission to acquire more than 50 per cent of a company in one of the wide-ranging sectors defined as 'strategic.' Russian newspapers listed the nuclear, aerospace and arms industry, as well as oil and gas, fishing and mass media among the 42 strategic sectors. But some Russian lawmakers have criticized the breadth of sectors seen as crucial to defence and security. The Minister of IT and Communications, Leonid Reyman, said last week that the bill could impede investment in the telecommunications market and cause a slow-down in the booming industry. It could take anywhere up to six months for approval on business deals from a comission headed by the prime minister, according to Russian media estimates. If passed into law, Putin, who has promised to become prime minister after May, would then be the first to head the new commission deciding on foreign requests to invest in strategic sectors.

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things the aricle forgotMar 21st, 2008 - 18:49:55

The aricle forgot to mention that foriegn government controlled companies are forbidden from buying russian companies, the perfect excuse for foreign governments to limit russian government controlled companies such as gazprom and the sovereign wealth fund of russia, they will simply be able to say it is a reciprocal measure.

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average russianMar 22nd, 2008 - 04:09:03

to the first poster:
Yeah, sure, whatever... The way things are going with the Western financial companies, they soon will be begging for Russian government money to bail them out.
Have a happy collapse!

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LToddMar 22nd, 2008 - 18:01:43

And so Putin takes another step toward becoming the next Soviet dictator.

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average russianMar 22nd, 2008 - 19:49:25

LTodd, you just made another giant step toward becoming another typical American retard. You are almost there.

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LToddMar 23rd, 2008 - 03:11:31

First of all, I'm Canadian, not American. Second, maximizing control of the means of production is exactly what the Soviet failure was all about.

Putin is no friend of the average Russian. He wants to be dictator.

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PowowMar 23rd, 2008 - 05:03:04

I couldn`t agree with you more average Russian. Ltodd should go back to watching The Flintstones. It`s disheartening to see that some Canadians are as braindead and clueless as americans. I feel sorry for his fellow countrymen (my guess is this Ltodd character is a jew).

More power to Russia and Vladimir Putin for safeguarding their country against the vultures who tried to parasite it to death in the 90`s.

I only wish the good ol` usa had someone like Putin in charge.

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LOLMar 23rd, 2008 - 10:16:54

Average Russian, not to worry Russians won't own anything for long, the way your AIDS infested race is going you will all be dead by the end of century, have a happy extinction.

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