Foreign companies operating in Russia are banding together to lobby the government for such reforms. The Foreign Investment Advisory Council and U.S. and European business groups are setting up working groups to advise on tax and legal reforms. Among other things, they want the government to create an ombudsman's office that could help business cut through the Russian bureaucratic morass. And the second path is the continuation to a certain extent of Yeltsin's policy, which can be described as moderate reforms. That's something we still don't know.
External factors can also affect the investment climate in Russia.
The OPEC decision spurred a decline in world oil prices that will surely reduce Russia's export and tax revenues from oil. It could also lower the ruble's exchange rate, thereby compromising Putin's promises to keep the currency stable. Soaring oil prices over the past several months were a major factor in the recent improvement in Russia's economy, swelling budget coffers and foreign currency reserves, which are now higher than at any time since 1998's effective ruble devaluation. Many observers are concerned that high spending will now lead Moscow to borrow from the Central Bank, with possible inflationary consequences. Such an outcome would not encourage more investment in Russia.