Investor Presentaiton
28 Leonid B. Vardomskiy
Ryazan Oblast, with the exception of the above-mentioned "Texaco." The pres-
ence of companies "Bosch" and "Salamander" can be seen as purely symbolic due
to their insignificant investments.
The TPC illustrates the importance of a large growing company that brings
significant financial resources and prestigious foreign transnational companies to
the region, and improves its image.
Moderately active and neutral actors occupy the space between these two
opposing forces. The category of moderately active players includes the Ryazan
Chamber of Commerce and Industry; enterprises with foreign investments pro-
ducing for the oblast and Russian markets; enterprises interested in exports, for
example, the Ryazan Equipment Building Plant; commercial companies that trade
in imported goods; commercial banks providing services for foreign economic
interactions. Owners and managers of enterprises that have good investment
potential act as proponents of attracting foreign investment, and sometimes suc-
ceed in doing so.
Among the political parties, the SPS and Yabloko belong to the moderately
active proponents of developing of foreign contacts. However, in public, repre-
sentatives of these parties are reluctant to express their position in this respect and
attracting foreign investment. In private conversations, however, regional leaders
of the parties of the right and of the public organizations voice a positive attitude
toward bringing foreign investment to Ryazan Oblast. The reluctance on the part
of the parties of the right to speak their minds can be explained by the specific fea-
tures of the Oblast electorate, by its mood, and, in particular, by the deeply rooted
social polarization in the region, which is attributed to the activity of foreign
capital.
The category of neutral actors includes regional enterprises, which belong to
the joint stock company "Gasprom," the Russian joint stock company "EES - Rus-
sia," "Sberbank," and transportation companies. These enterprises work mostly
for the domestic market. However, they are interested in expanding the number
of paying customers for their products and services. To the extent that the devel-
opment of foreign relations would contribute to such growth, they are interested
in expanding those as well. However, as a rule, they are off-limits for foreign
investors.
Among the politically neutral actors are the regional branches of the parties
of the center. The administration of Ryazan Oblast can also be categorized as a
neutral actor, because it is forced to balance between the interests of the business
elites and the need to make the oblast more attractive to investors, on the one
hand, and the predominant public mood in the oblast, on the other. The attitude
of the oblast administration to bringing in foreign investment appears positive at
first glance. However, it mainly supports investment projects, in which its repre-
sentatives participate directly. Investment projects that are implemented directly,
Foreign Economic Relations of Ryazan Oblast 29
bypassing the oblast administration, not only do not enjoy any support, but often
face counter-action on the part of the administration. This was the case, for exam-
ple, with the joint stock company "Ryazan Plant of Automobile Equipment."
While the enterprise was hardly functioning, and was under the control of the
administration, it fully satisfied the administration. However, as soon as the man-
agement achieved substantial progress in negotiations with foreign investors
without the oblast administration, the latter initiated bankruptcy proceedings for
that enterprise. The role of the Oblast Duma in expanding the oblast's participa-
tion in foreign contacts has been more negative than neutral up until now.View entire presentation