    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George W. Bush (2001, Book II)]
    [November 13, 2001]
    [Pages 1400-1401]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    Joint Statement by President George W. Bush and President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia on the New
    Russian-American Economic Relationship
    November 13, 2001

        We confirm our determination to foster a new dynamic in American-
    Russian economic interaction. We seek to harness the forces of global
    commerce in order to improve contacts between our people, increase their
    prosperity, and to further strengthen the integration of Russia into the
    world economy.
        We are committed to creating conditions that will enhance our trade
    and investment relations and help Russia reach its economic potential as
    a fully integrated and leading member of the world economy. Russia has a
    role to play in this century as an engine of world growth and a center
    of innovative thinking.
        We will work together to build confidence in the climate for trade
    and investment between our two countries. An important element of this
    activity is Russia's integration into the rules-based global trading
    system of the World Trade Organization. We confirm our commitment and
    place considerable priority to working together in an effort to
    accelerate Russia's WTO accession negotiations, based on standard
    conditions.
        We emphasize our commitment to combating money laundering and the
    financing of terrorism.
        In line with our desire to enhance the role of the American and
    Russian business communities in developing our commercial

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    relations, we note the successful visit to Russia of an American
    business delegation led by United States
    Commerce Secretary Donald Evans. We welcome as well progress to date of
    the newly-established Russian-American Business Dialogue. We look
    forward to the presentation of its initial recommendations to our two
    governments early in 2002. We encourage the Dialogue to continue to
    identify areas where our laws and regulations impede trade and
    investment, to pinpoint new opportunities for business, to strengthen
    the rule of law, and thus to attract new entrants to the commerce
    between our two countries.
        We note that significant progress has been made in strengthening our
    economic relations since we met in Genoa. The first example is the
    completion and operationalization of the Caspian Pipeline Consortium,
    the largest U.S.-Russian joint investment to date. The second is the
    recent breakthrough on the Sakhalin I oil and gas project, which opens
    the door to the single, largest private investment project in Russia,
    representing $12 billion in projected capital investment in the region
    and creating up to 10,000 new jobs. We declare support to other U.S.-
    Russian investment projects in various fields and, above all, in high-
    technology areas. In order to ensure the participation of American
    representatives in successful investment projects in the Russian Far
    East, the United States intends to officially present a request to open
    in Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk a branch office of its Consulate General in
    Vladivostok.
        We welcome the renewed efforts of the Export-Import Bank, the
    Overseas Private Investment Corporation, and the Trade and Development
    Agency of the United States to promote bilateral trade and investment
    opportunities through project finance, risk insurance, and project
    assessment, as well as their readiness to expand financing in support of
    our growing economic relationship.
        Small and medium businesses are important to the growth of both our
    economies. We are mindful of the tax, legal, regulatory and finance
    environment necessary for these entrepreneurs to flourish. As the
    foundations of the rule of law and free market economy strengthen in
    Russia, small and medium enterprise will expand. The United States is
    increasing funding to a number of programs, such as the European Bank
    for Reconstruction and Development's Russia Small Business Fund, to
    provide financing and assistance to Russian entrepreneurs and to prepare
    Russian financial institutions to be able to carry out such financing
    independently through their access to such programs.
        A sound, transparent and competitive banking sector is critical to
    sustained economic growth. To this end, we endorse the launch of a
    public-private dialogue among banks, businesses, financial institutions
    and financial authorities to identify actions that would promote the
    growth of the banking sector in Russia consistent with the needs of a
    modern free-market economy. We stand firmly in support of the principle
    of non-discrimination in our cooperation in the banking sector.
        We reaffirm our resolve to seek practical solutions and achieve
    measurable results to even the most difficult issues.

    Note: An original was not available for verification of the content of
    this joint statement.