According to Boris Gryzlov, the Speaker of the Russian State Duma and the Chairman of the Supreme Council of the United Russia party, Russia needs to create social and economic mechanisms that would allow it to develop steadily in the future.

During a visit to the United States, on July 12, 2011, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation Sergey Lavrov came to the Washington, D.C. studio of the Voice of Russia radio station that opened in May 2011 and gave an interview covering a range of issues in Russian-American and international relations.

Officials at the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs expressed surprise over the U.S. Senate’s resolution where the republics of Abkhazia and South Ossetia were described as Russian-occupied territories.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated that there are signs the six-nation talks on the subject of the North Korean nuclear program may be revived in the near future. The talks involve the countries of North Korea, South Korea, the U.S., Russia, China, and Japan.

The European Union and Russia expect to enter into an agreement on easing the visa regime before the end of the year. According to the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation Sergey Lavrov, Russia has reached an agreement with the European Union on simplifying the visa regime.

The Reserve Fund of the Russian Federation totaled RUR 734.98 billion, or USD 26.55 billion, on the last day of July 2011, according to the Ministry of Finance. The balance of the fund’s accounts stood at USD 11.08 billion, or EUR 9.04 billion.

From January to June of 2011, the profits of Gazprom Neft rose by an impressive 74 percent on a year-on-year bases. Computed in accordance with U.S. GAAP, the profit figure stood at USD 2 604 million.

The exportation of oil through the Kozmino terminal, which is a part of the Port of Vostochny on the Sea of Japan, increased by as much as 5 percent from January to June of 2011. The total volume of fuel exported totaled 7 498 thousand metric tons, or 55.11 million barrels. 

At the conclusion of the Atomexpo-2011 international nuclear energy convention, representatives of Russia and the United States announced they were ready to work together on nuclear energy.

Experts say that the new policy of issuing guarantees to power market companies can solve debt issues, but not the main problems associated with non-payment by end users. Non-payments and arrearages have always been considered significant issues for the Russian electric power industry.

Sberbank intends to list 5 396 737 thousand shares in the form of ADRs on stock exchanges in London and Frankfurt. Four common shares of Sberbank will be equivalent to one ADR. 

The National Rating Agency in Russia designated the individual reliability score for VTB Capital, the investment arm of VTB Group, as “AAA”. In making its decision, the agency took into account both the company’s financial reports made under Russian Accounting Standards, as well as other non-financial data.    

In mid-June, the U.S.-based pharmaceutical and consumer products company Johnson and Johnson entered into an agreement with the Skolkovo Foundation to participate in the development of the Skolkovo research hub near Moscow.

Company RusNano is making plans to provide funds for the development of the electronic components for microelectromechanical systems that can be utilized in sensors, computing, and telecommunications equipment.

The Russian-based software company EPAM systems is preparing to make an initial public offering. The company has already submitted its registration documents to the Securities and Exchange Commission.  

The Russian Air Force and NORAD conducted Vigilant Eagle 2011 exercises in the Russian Far East from August 8 to 11, in an effort to simulate a military operation for the release of a hijacked airliner.   

From July 31 to August 8, 2011, a Tupolev Tu-154-M Lk-1 plane with a group of Russian inspectors flew over the United States in accordance with the Treaty on Open Skies.  The airplane departed from the Travis Air Force Base in California.

. Last year, Russia took around 25 percent of shopping center development in Europe, with more than 1.3 million square meters, or 14 million square feet, of commercial real estate built.

The project received media attention for the first time when the regional Governor Mr. Alexey Gordeyev met with Geoff Verhoff of the Akin Gump law firm that is representing the Anderson Cattle Company Ltd. in the negotiations with local officials.

The governmental agency instituted the import band amidst suspicions that the minced turkey produced by Cargill Meat Solutions Corp. in Arkansas is responsible for the outbreak of salmonella, with at least 79 reported cases of the illness (including one death).

The Administration of Barack Obama has agreed to provide a loan in the amount of USD 730 million for renovating a Michigan factory operated by the Russian steel group Severstal. The factory is supplying parts to American car makers.

From January to July, metalworking enterprises from Russia shipped 1.268 million tons of steel to consumers and clients in Europe. This volume of supplies constitutes 38.9 percent of the quota established by the European Commission for the current year.

Russian company Evraz Group S.A. is making preparations to increase its output of pipe at U.S. production facilities to 250 thousand tons by August 2012. The company will begin the production of pipe meeting the API (American Petroleum Institute) in the near future.

The metallurgical company Metallist based in the Kaluga region in southern Russia plans to erect a USD 15.1 million multi-purpose facility to produce metal products in the Leningrad region in northwest Moscow. In total, the company is making plans to produce 30 000 tons of metal products per year.

In mid-July, the third biggest steel producer in Russia, the Magnitogorsk Iron and Steel Works, also known as MMK, began the operation of Mill 2000, which constitutes the first block of the new cold roll production complex. 

Imports of cars increased by 82 percent to stand at USD 13.5 billion, and the sales of Russian cars increased by 52 percent to reach USD 3.5 billion. Sales of foreign-brand vehicles assembled in Russia increased by more than two times to reach USD 10.2 billion.

The Russian car producer GAZ Group entered into an agreement with the Terex Corporation for venturing together to produce machinery and equipment for road construction. Under the agreement, the assembly line will be built in Russia.

The biggest manufacturer of trucks in Russia Kamaz based in Naberezhnye Chelny began intensifying its production schedules and increasing the numbers of vehicles it makes. The company is planning to hire 4 000 extra workers.

In early August it was announced that members of the Security Council of the Russian Federation are in the near future expected to hold a meeting in the Nenets autonomous district in order to address the subject of creating transportation infrastructure for the Arctic zone. 

Standard and Poor’s gave a “BBB-” long-term corporate credit rating to Sovcomflot. The national scale rating for the sea carrier was “ruAAA”. The company’s outlook has been designated as stable.

On May 24, 2011, the Russian President informed the Commission on Modernization that he issued orders to create a federal regulatory agency responsible for intellectual property rights.

Russian and foreign researchers conducted additional investigations and dated a skull of a canine located in a cave at Razboinichya in the Altai Mountains lying in Southern Siberia. The skull was first discovered in the 1970s.

This summer, wine making enterprise Fanagoria from the Kuban province in southern Russia commenced the production of organic wine.

The government of the Arkhangel’sk region has directed companies working in the northern Russian province to concentrate their efforts on developing diamond production, as well as the innovative processing of basalt and peat.

Russian regulatory and supervisory agencies assigned a “guaranteed transparency” designation of “++” in the National Ranking of Procurement Transparency to the republic of Tatarstan in the Volga Federal District.   

According to Governor Valery Serduykov of the Leningrad region, the quality of paved roads in the districts surrounding St. Petersburg will soon improve, as more funds ensure the continuation of upkeep activities for the transportation industry. 

The dairy farm located in the village of Kalikino in the Lipetsk region will be completely modernized in the fall of 2011, according to the director of the regional enterprise Lipetskoye Mr. Sergei Muzalev. The 1 000-cow farm now belongs to a commercial entity Avangard, which is controlled by Lipetskoye.