Dear participants of the Eleventh Russian Economic and Financial Forum in Switzerland, I am particularly pleased to attend this Forum and to represent the Swiss Parliament. I already wish all of you intensive and successful discussions. This Forum is an excellent opportunity to discuss political, economic and financial questions and to develop and strengthen relationships on several levels.

As my predecessors who were also present at the Russian Economic and Financial Forum in Switzerland, I have set myself the aim of intensifying relations between our two countries and addressing issues of mutual interest. In this sense I am convinced that the tradition of intensive and fruitful discussions between Switzerland and Russia will continue in 2012 and afterwards. The Swiss Parliament will be pleased to support and to contribute to these developments.

Dear participants of the Russian Economic and Financial Forum 2012 in Switzerland, I am delighted to welcome you all in Switzerland! The Russian government puts a lot of emphasis on the modernisation of the Russian economy and society as a whole. I am sure that Switzerland with its modern economic structure, its potential in know-how and innovative high-technology products can be an interesting partner for Russia in the process of realizing its ambitious modernising efforts, e.g. in the areas of energy efficiency, health, engineering as well as information- and nanotechnologies (these areas of cooperation have been defined by the Swiss-Russian Action Plan for Economic Cooperation 2011-2013).

We support your efforts and would like to strengthen our cooperation in these areas. That is why last summer Switzerland and Russia decided to sign a joint declaration on cooperation in the interest of economic modernisation. The perspectives of our bilateral economic relations are promising: a growing interest of Swiss companies in entering the Russian market could be witnessed for the last few years, a tendency which is stressed by the increasing number of enquiries addressed to the Swiss Business Hub in Moscow. The interest of Russian companies in Switzerland has grown too.

It is a well known fact that countries with a highly developed and diversified economy interact most intensely with those countries that have a similar economic structure. To the degree that Russia succeeds in its efforts to diversify its economy and supports innovation, the economic exchange between Switzerland and Russia will undoubtedly gain momentum.

Dear participants of the Eleventh Session of the Russian Economic and Financial Forum in Switzerland, the relations between Russia and Switzerland are excellent and have reached unprecedented levels. We observe with deep satisfaction that much is being done now that was inconceivable only a generation ago in the political, economic, scientific and cultural fields.

As we continually try to widen and deepen our relations, particular attention is paid to improve the framework conditions of the financial and economic sectors. Concluding new treaties or adapting existing ones help to enhance the legal basis of our cooperation and create the conditions for joint ventures in new areas. Thus, in 2010, Russia and Switzerland signed a declaration on modernising their bilateral relations, a revised double taxation agreement as well as memoranda of understanding in the fields of finance and energy. Russia’s accession to the WTO and the signing in the near future of a free-trade agreement between EFTA and Russia, Kazakhstan and Belarus will further facilitate our economic exchange. Additional possibilities for an enhanced financial cooperation are expected to emerge in the run-up to the G20 summit being hosted by Russia in 2013.

I am convinced that there is still a lot of scope for further diversifying and strengthening our cooperation, we just have to seize the opportunities. The Russian Economic and Financial Forum in Switzerland is an excellent occasion to do just that.

As the new Ambassador of Switzerland to the Russian Federation, it is a particular pleasure for me to welcome all the delegates and participants to the 2012 Russian Economic and Financial Forum in Switzerland (FINAS Forum) in my country Switzerland and to express my best wishes for another most successful and interesting forum.

Switzerland is once more very much honoured to host this high level event, as it is an excellent platform of contacts, offering outstanding meeting opportunities with top decision makers of the Russian political and economic elite. In this sense, I am very pleased to note that FINAS Forum highly contributes to the development of our very dense bilateral relations. I am indeed privileged to be able to start my assignment in the Russian Federation on the basis of such excellent relations between our two countries, as clearly demonstrated on the occasion of the joined visit of President Micheline Calmy-Rey and Federal Councillor Johann Schneider-Ammann to Russia in July 2011. It will be a fascinating challenge for me to bring these excellent relations to an even higher height.

This year’s Forum takes place in the context of the euro-zone crisis. Tough decisions will still have to be taken within the EU to tackle this highly complex and difficult situation, i.e. mastering the huge debt problems while trying to avoid a deep recession. Switzerland and Russia, as main EU partners, are also affected by these developments and the 2012 FINAS Forum offers an excellent platform to discuss the best ways and means to mitigate the negative effects.

To conclude on a more positive note, this year’s forum also takes place in the context of Russia’s accession to WTO. Switzerland is very proud to have been able to bring a positive contribution to the process and is convinced that this membership will give a solid basis for progressing as quickly as possible with the on-going free trade negotiations between EFTA countries and the Russian Federation, Kazakhstan and Belarus. Both initiatives will without any doubt have a very positive impact on our already excellent bilateral economic relations. I wish every participant inspiring and fruitful discussions during the 2012 FINAS Forum and a very pleasant stay in Switzerland.

As the President of the Swiss Business Federation it is my great pleasure to attend the Russian Economic and Financial Forum in Switzerland and I would like to wish a successful work and fruitful discussions to all participants. A long-standing friendship exists between Russia and Switzerland and economic relations have steadily intensified. Russia’s accession to the WTO and a comprehensive free trade agreement between EFTA and Russia / Belarus / Kazakhstan, which we hope can be concluded in the near future, will intensify trade and investment activity over the long run. The Russian Economic and Financial Forum offers the opportunity to further strengthen the bilateral relations between Russia and Switzerland with the aim of tapping the full economic potential. The Forum is an ideal platform for renewing business relationships, creating new networks and discussing current challenges and economic opportunities with experts from both countries. I am looking forward to seeing you in Zurich and wish all delegates a successful Forum with tangible results.