Obama Urges Russians to Cut Out Corruption

President Barack Obama, speaking in Moscow on Tuesday, pressed Russians to back a strong rule of law and refused to rule out a second stimulus plan for the U.S. economy. 

"I don't take anything off the table when unemployment is close to 10% and a lot of Americans are hurting out there," said President Obama about the possibility of a second stimulus package.  

The President also defended the first stimulus plan against criticism from Republicans and Democrats who charge the spending is too slow. 

"You just can't push that out that quickly, partly not just because the federal government has to process applications, but also because states and local governments have to gear up to get these projects going, "said President Obama.  "My sense is that we are going to see those projects hit in the second half of the year." 

The President's Tuesday agenda included meetings with Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin and former Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev, and delivering the commencement address at the New Economic School.  In an economic environment replete with bribes and black markets, President Obama urged Russian students and political leaders to respect the rule of law. 

"Government can promote this cooperation, but individuals must advance it," said President Obama to the New Economic School.  "Because the greatest resource of any nation in the 21st century is its people, and the countries which tap that resource are the countries that will succeed. That success depends upon economies that function within the rule of law."

Analysts at the Eurasia Group cite statistics from the General Procurators Office indicating that corruption in Russia hit $300 billion in 2008, They also note that in 2005, the respected Russian think tank Indem published a report that estimated bureaucrats took some $5 billion in bribes in 2004.

After speaking at the New Economic School, President Obama joined Russian President Dmitry Medvedev at the Parallel Business Summit, which featured hundreds of representatives from Russian and U.S. businesses. 

Speaking before executives from the likes of Exxon Mobil (XOM: 66.56, 0, 0%), Chevron (CVX: 62.77, 0, 0%), ConocoPhillips (COP: 39.99, 0, 0%), Deere & Co. (DE: 35.9958, 0, 0%), Xerox (XRX: 6.06, 0, 0%), PepsiCo (PEP: 56, 0, 0%), Alcoa (AA: 9.38, 0, 0%) and Boeing (BA: 39.02, 0, 0%), the President pushed for more trade between the U.S. and Russia.  Last year, the two counties totaled $36 billion in trade -- slightly more than the U.S. and Thailand, less than the U.S. and Belgium.

"We want Russia to be selling us goods and we want to buy goods from Russia," said the President. 

Ultimately, it is up to private investors to determine if the safety of Russia's markets and the predictability of its government are sufficient to protect their money.