Of the hundreds of ambassadors in Washington, D.C., how many actually have his or her own blog? The only one I know of is Ambassador Idrissov at the Embassy of the Republic of Kazakhstan who is using his blog to more directly dialogue with the American people.

We recently did a webinar together with the participation of the Kazakhstan Embassy, and the event attracted the attention of Ambassador Idrissov, who blogged about the embassy’s first webinar. Another one is planned for the latter half of September focusing on agribusiness opportunities in Kazakhstan. Stay posted for detailed on that event.

For those interested, it’s still not to late to register for the USA Eurasia Business Conference in Omaha which we’ll be attending. Big line-up of diplomats, speakers and participants for anyone interested in business in Eurasia.

Leave it to the Moscow Times to come up with a splashy series of guides on how to do business in Russia (as if this could be summarized in a few chapters). For those in the more advanced category, they recently came out with “Russia for the Advanced.” What qualifies one for “advanced” standing isn’t quite clear to me. Perhaps a minimum of 5 years of uninterrupted residence in the country, or the ability to drink a liter of vodka without falling under the table, or the ability to fearlessly deal with a Russian border guard scrutinizing your visa and passport 15 times before letting you through without breaking a sweat. For those less initiated, there is the starter volume “Russia for Beginners.” I guess one never should overdose on one’s exposure to Russia and take it step by step.

Imagine what an analogous guide about the United States would contain: What is the difference between Fox News and MSNBC?  Why are Americans obsessed with counting calories but we’re the most obese among developed nations? Why is health care the most expensive in the world in the U.S., yet far from being the best? And why are parents so obsessed with the athletic performance of their children while they are increasingly failing to learn the essentials needed to compete globally? I’m just not sure there are clear answers to these questions, but it would be an interesting read.

Reuters recently reported that Wal-Mart is in negotiations to acquire the Lenta retail chain in Russia. Wal-Mart has long sat on the sidelines, vying for an optimal market entry vehicle. We shall see whether their patience will pay off, although Wal-Mart missed the bottom of the market as retail sales are recovering. Carrefour bailed out of the Russian market last year within a year after entering, citing limited growth prospects. That was probably an incorrect conclusion although it may have been a necessary decision given financial and global market considerations at the time.

The Financial Times had an interesting article recently about the challenges of doing business in Russia (and which I posted on AmLaw’s Facebook page and LinkedIn page). Yes, yes, the Western media does have a predisposed negativity towards Russia that is discussed ad naseum in various forums and sites. And for the most part they’re right. Nevertheless, doing business in Russia IS in fact a challenge, so there’s no sense in ignoring this reality.

And yet, in reading this piece, one common thread comes through: despite all the corruption, blatant abuse, and Kafka-esque sagas from Khodorkovsky, Chichvarkin, and on down, nearly every major multinational that has entered the market has decided the costs of leaving are greater than staying.

A sidebar in the FT article highlights the success story of John Deere in launching its plant outside Moscow in 9 months–no small feat considering comparable projects in China take 70% less time and cost 1/2 as much. And John Deere is already planning on increasing its investments in Russia by another $500 mln. over the next 5-7 years.

I recently ran across this nifty IPO Tracker for CIS markets by The PBN Company.

Russia continues to dominate all other CIS markets in terms of past and future IPO volumes. PBN made reference to a Kazakhstani “IPO Renaissance.” That might be putting things a bit too optimistically, since previously there really wasn’t much of an IPO market in Kazakhstan to begin with. But 7 Kazakhstani companies are considered to be potential candidates for IPO’s this year. Certainly an improvement over 2009, and further efforts are being made to improve Kazakhstan’s investment image–beyond, of course, a Borat sequel!

The Wall Street Journal recently posted an interesting article that echoed a premise we’ve been long promoting: the great opportunities that exist for investors interested in obtaining US permanent residency through the  EB-5 program.
The post in the WSJ quotes a few colleagues of mine in discussing this often overlooked visa category. And what great opportunities EB-5 visas offer for those with money to invest to receive a green card very quickly.

And next month we’ll be at the biggest EB-5 conference to date in Boston, building upon our contacts with the Regional Centers and other related specialists with whom we work to ensure our clients find the best program and investment for their needs.

Chinese investors were the Number 1 recipient of EB-5 visas in 2009, receiving 1,979 of them. Russian citizens accounted for only 60 visas last year, placing them in the Number 8 spot. Considering how many billionaires from Russia there are on the Forbes list, this obviously is not reflective the number of eligible applicant investors.

What, may you ask, do Skolkovo (the latest government-driven initiative to create a Russian version of Silicon Valley) and Peter the Great have in common? Probably a lot more than initially meets the eye.

Thomas Friedman’s recent opinion article in the NY Times touches upon this in his broader analysis of the recent spy scandal where he quotes commentary by Leon Aron from the American Enterprise Institute. In particular, Mr. Aron writes:

“Importing ideas and technology from the West has been a key element in Russia’s ‘modernizations’ since at least Peter the Great in the early 18th century. … But Russia has tightly controlled what it imported: Machines and engineers, yes. A spirit of free inquiry, a commitment to innovation free from bureaucratic ‘guidance’ and, most important, encouragement of brave, even brash, entrepreneurs who can be confident they will own the results of their work — most certainly no. Peter and his successors sought to produce fruit without cultivating the roots. … Only a man or woman free from fear and overseers can build a Silicon Valley. And such men and women are harder and harder to come by in Russia today. … Disgusted and scared by the lawlessness and rampant corruption. … Russian entrepreneurs are investing very little in their country beyond their immediate production needs.”

I think his fruit analogy is very illustrative and a telling metaphor that seems to be a common thread in Russia’s history. Creating the fruit without cultivating the underlying roots that play such a crucial role in providing the long-term sustenance for a healthy commercial and political environment is a policy destined to failure, as history has shown repeatedly and not simply in the Russian context.

The annual A.T. Kearney survey of global retail markets for 2010 has dropped Russia in its ratings. The Global Retail Development Index has for some time served as the benchmark for global retail markets, particularly in emerging markets, and until this year Russia had been regularly in the top three, duking it out with India and China for top honors. For 2010 the index results show Russia tumbling 8 spots to number 10, down from its position in 2009 at number 2. This was the largest slide for any market in the top 20 markets in the survey.

Although one could argue whether this steep downgrade was indeed warranted, it does reflect the vagaries of the Russian market. It certainly places Russia in the worst position among its fellow BRIC countries (all the others of which are in the Top 5).  Hopefully, Anna Chapman will not find the retail scene in Moscow to be noticeably worse than in New York, as it seems she’ll be unable to make any shopping tours of the Big Apple for the foreseeable future.

If you missed us on our earlier webinar this month discussing the new customs union between Russia, Kazakhstan and Belarus, it’s not too late to join us for our upcoming webinar on the Ukraine and what legal issues to watch out for when entering that market. AmLaw is honored to be joined by several senior attorneys from Vasil Kisil & Partners to share with our clients some key issues to watch out for when entering this market–issues your JV partner or attorney don’t inform you of until it’s often too late.

Register by going to Wed, Jun 30, 2010 12:00 PM – 1:00 PM EDT

With the presidential elections in Ukraine having now passed, the local and international business communities are now resuming their activities under the new Yanukovich administration. Ukraine’s proximity to the EU as well as the Russian market has long made it an appealing location for international firms, and hopes for political stability are driving newly heightened interest abroad, particularly among American and Canadian firms.

As with any market, there are fundamental issues to keep in mind when entering the Ukrainian market either independently, through a joint venture, or an acquisition. Several attorneys from the law firm of Vasil Kisil & Partners will share valuable insights during this webinar on the common pitfalls that foreign firms encounter when entering Ukraine and what to do to avoid them. Vasil Kisil & Partners has been widely

Event Agenda:

• Welcome by Charles Raether, Managing Partner, AmLaw Group, Washington, D.C.
• Presentation by Denis Lysenko, Partner and Anna Babych, counselor, Vasil Kisil & Partners, Kiev, Ukraine
• Q&A among presenters and participants

AmLaw Group (www.amlawpro.com) is a boutique law firm based in the metropolitan Washington, D.C., area that specializes in corporate law, cross-border trade and investment, and business immigration. In addition to assisting foreign firms entering the U.S. market, AmLaw Group supports U.S. companies with their outbound transactions and investments overseas with a particular focus on markets in Eurasia, primarily Kazakhstan, Russia, and Ukraine. AmLaw actively works with the financing side of international transactions and is an originator for OPIC finance and political risk insurance products. AmLaw also actively practices in the area of business immigration with an emphasis on investor visas for foreign investors seeking permanent residency in the U.S..

Vasil Kisil & Partners (www.kisilandpartners.com) is a leading Ukrainian full-service law firm known for its relentless focus on client success that delivers integrated legal solutions to complex business issues. Vasil Kisil & Partners has repeatedly been recognized by various independent organizations as a leader in the legal field in Ukraine. Most recently, Corporate Intnerational named Vasil Kisil & Partners the Full Service Advisory Firm of the Year; Corporate Advisory Firm of the Year, and top firm in a number of other practice areas.

In Ukraine, Vasil Kisil & Partners brand is synonymous with great depth and breadth of legal expertise and experience, which has created superior value for our clients since 1992. The firm has a history of taking bold steps — from building one of Ukraine’s first independent law firm model to incorporating an integrated structure — to better serve its clients. VKP serves international and domestic companies, dealing in agriculture, banking, chemical, construction, financial, energy, hi-tech, general commodities, insurance, IT, media, metallurgy, pharmaceutical, real estate, shipbuilding, telecommunication, trading, transport, and other industries and economy sectors. VKP’s work for such world-known companies as Alcatel, Astellas Pharma, BASF, Bayer Consumer, BNP Paribas, Central European Media Enterprises, Dell, Du Pont, Eurosport, Fitch, Hewlett-Packard, Gucci, LG Electronics, Marks & Spencer, Merrill Lynch, Moody’s, Nissan, Opel, OTP Bank, Pioneer, Philips, SEB Group, Saab, Siemens, Shell, Tchibo, Volkswagen and many others continues to receive international recognition of Legal 500, IFLR 1000, Chambers Global and Chambers Europe, Martindale-Hubbell and many other respected sources.

Bloomberg posted an interesting article on the failure of Russian firms to catch on in the IPO segment after RusAl’s debut in Hong Kong last year. Some of this apathy could be a result of RusAl’s less-than-spectacular reputation, but the negative reputation of Russian oligarchs and Russian firms in general are certainly also behind this.