Sept. 18, 2007 (LPAC) —The Second Far East International Economic Forum opened today in Khabarovsk, Russia. On the eve of the event, Khabarovsk Territory Governor Victor Ishayev addressed its Organizing Committee. Ishayev confirmed that the dimensions of the Federal Program to Develop the Far East and Trans-Baikal Regions, adopted by the Government on Aug. 3 when Mikhail Fradkov was still prime minister, are still on the national agenda after the dismissal of Fradkov and his cabinet last week. The essentials of that 566 billion-ruble ($22.3 billion) commitment, from now to 2013, were reported in EIR of September 7.

Governor Ishayev was chairman of the Russian State Council in 2001, when it adopted a report that carried his name, calling for dirigistic financing and related measures to revive Russia's economy, with emphasis on the real sector. At the time, the Ishayev Report remained a dead letter, but the Khabarovsk Forum is the latest of a number of indications that at least some of its principles are being revived. (A translation of the Ishayev Report appeared in EIR of March 2, 2001.

Talking about the commitment adopted on Aug. 3, as Itar-TASS reported, Ishayev said yesterday: "The State has assumed the task of financing 80 percent of all the required spending." He said that this alone would give a strong impetus to economic development in the region, but "the total effect will be several-fold greater, because the total amount of investment that is attracted can be an order of magnitude greater."

Over 800 people are attending the Khabarovsk event, including 130 foreign participants from China, South Korea, Japan, the USA, and other nations.

According to initial coverage in the Russian media today, detailed presentations are being made by representatives of the electric power, oil, railroad, and other key industries, or projects for the Far East and the region.