On February 2, 2004, the Gorbachev Foundation held the round-table discussion on the theme “New Russian Federalism: Is it a Mere Declaration or Reality?” The event, hosted by the Foundation’s President Mikhail Gorbachev, was organized jointly by the Gorbachev Foundation, the non-governmental Center for Fiscal Policy (CFP) (Moscow), and the World Bank Institute.

The discussion focused on the following questions:

• Who benefits from federalism in Russia?
• Is economic growth compatible with federalism?
• Russian federalism: is it typical or unique?
• Will a lesser number of RF subjects mean more federalism?
• What are the powers of a RF subject? Are they only about spending, not earning?

Presentations were made Dr. Adrian Campbell, School of Public Policy, The University of Birmingham, U.K.; Dr. Galina Kurlyandskaya, General Director, CFP; Professor Jorge Martinez-Vazquez, Director, International Studies Program at the Andrew Young School of Policy Studies, Georgia State University; and Dr. Aleksandr Yusupovsky, expert of the Analytical Department, Federation Council of the Russian Federation.

The presentations were discussed by high-ranking state officials, experts from the Gorbachev Foundation, the Institute for Regional Problems, Finance Ministry of the Russian Federation, members of the Federation Council, and other leading Russian experts.

Proceedings of the Round Table are being prepared for publication.

You can find more information about the event in English and in Russian and read abstract of presentation by Dr. Adrian Campbell at the CFP’s official web-site at: http://english.fpcenter.ru/