Suspension of activities in the US, Sabantuys in Asia — how Tatarstan’s representative offices to work in 2023

From Japan to the Czech Republic: the republic will continue to develop international relations in trade and economic sectors


Suspension of activities in the US, Sabantuys in Asia — how Tatarstan’s representative offices to work in 2023 Photo: realnoevremya.ru/Maksim Platonov (archive)

Despite the rupture of relations between Russia and Western countries, the authorities of Tatarstan still plan to interact with their foreign counterparts. A number of commercial and industrial representative offices of the region in the current year and the planned 2024 are to hold many different events abroad. It is assumed that they will affect not only neighbouring states, but also those who have been included in the list of unfriendly countries. Even taking into account mutual restrictions, the cooperation plan contains both cultural and economic goals. Read the details in the material of Realnoe Vremya.

“There is a representative office in the USA, but it does not function”

Despite the continuation of the line of interaction, geopolitical changes still played a role in the activities of trade and economic missions. The indicators of their assessment in 2022 and 2023 have a number of changes with both positive and negative dynamics. In many countries that have imposed or supported sanctions, some of the areas of cooperation have changed or disappeared altogether. At the same time, some of the same states continue to export Tatarstan products to their market, increasing the number of enterprises covered. These mainly include European countries that were involved in the introduction of restrictions against mastodons of the republican industry: KAMAZ PJSC, Kazan Helicopters JSC, Ak Bars Shipbuilding Corporation JSC in Zelenodolsk, Zelenodolsk Design Bureau JSC, Kazan Optical and Mechanical Plant JSC and others.

However, not all of these countries are ready to compromise and build relationships. Someone just stopped at the achieved level and is not going to grow further, and someone has dropped out of the partner list altogether over the past year. For example, last year Tatarstan's representative office in the USA, although not in large volumes, continued to conduct a dialogue on cooperation.

In 2022, three events were organised in the field of tourism and three more in the field of education. At the same time, American enterprises have signed one contract with small and medium-sized enterprises of the republic. In turn, the Ministry of Healthcare of the Republic of Tatarstan sent one citizen to undergo routine medical care. And the volume of investments in the region was $20 million.

But this year, the USA is not on the list, and the link to the representative office in the country just disappeared from the website of the Ministry of Industry and Trade of the Republic of Tatarstan.

“There is a representative office in the USA, but it does not function. In total, Tatarstan has 14 representative offices abroad, 13 of them are functioning. Besides, the republic has eight representative offices in the constituent entities of Russia — all of them work," a source in the regional government told Realnoe Vremya.

It is worth noting that on January 26 the US Treasury introduced personal sanctions against Tatarstan President Rustam Minnikhanov. His wife Gulsina Minnikhanova was also blacklisted by the department.

Dozens of directions for eight departments — what do the representative offices do?

According to the approved indicators for evaluating the effectiveness of representative offices, in 2023 they are to carry out a number of activities, each of which has its own department.

For example, the Ministry of Industry and Trade itself will be engaged in the implementation of the plan for the number of enterprises engaged in export. The Investment Development Agency (TIDA) will organise and conduct presentations of the investment potential of the republic. The Ministry of Agriculture and Food will establish business ties for the import of agro-industrial products. In turn, the Ministry of Economy is to fulfill the plan for the number of contracts concluded with counterparties of the countries where the representative offices are located, as well as small and medium-sized businesses. The Ministry of Culture will hold a number of events planned by Tatar public organisations. The Ministry of Education and Science, as well as the Ministry of Youth Affairs, organises participation in international events, as well as visits of youth delegations. In conclusion, the Ministry of Healthcare will direct citizens of the republic to provide planned medical care as part of the development of the export of medical services.

Control over the execution of all measures is entrusted to the Ministry of Industry and Trade of Tatarstan. The document was signed by Prime Minister of the Republic Alexey Pesoshin.

Tatarstan exports both to Japan and Leipzig

Some of the trade and economic representative offices do not just continue their work in the territories of unfriendly countries. Their plans in some industries are no different from those that will be carried out within the country or in cooperation with “friends” and “neighbours”.

Until 2020, the authorities of the republics held the annual business forum “Tatarstan — Czech Republic”. The representatives of the European country have repeatedly visited the region, and Alabuga SEZ could become a place for the establishment of Czech enterprises.

Earlier this month, Tatneft liquidated two companies with headquarters in Switzerland: the subsidiary trading Tatneft Europe AG and the settlement and financial Tatneft Explora AG.

Let us remind that in November, the German government extended the powers of Takhir Gataullin as the trade and economic representative of the republic in Germany.

Sabantuy, ethno-festival and beauty contest: cultural ties from Kazakhstan to Turkmenistan

This year, Tatarstan aims at large-scale development of cultural and sports areas. The activities in the neighbouring states will be interconnected and have one goal. As for the “friends” of the republic, who do not have nationally similar roots, there is a bet on industry and the economy.

In general, the remaining indicators for the work of departments with representative offices will remain unchanged and the number of their interactions with countries will continue on stabilised indicators.

After investments in 2022, the TIDA plans to conquer the regions of Russia with its presentations

As for the regions of Russia itself, the indicators here are similar to those planned in friendly countries. However, departmental shares do not have a record high growth, and in some areas they will not participate at all. Besides, the indicators of several subjects turned out to be completely identical to last year's.

For example, the Permanent Representative Office in Sverdlovsk Oblast is going to increase the plan for the number of enterprises engaged in exports to 27 (25 in 2022). At the same time, after the investments received last year from the entity in the amount of $250 million, the TIDA plans to hold four of its presentations there. Also, the Ministry of Finance of the Republic of Tatarstan will begin to interact with the region, which will start working in four directions at once (it did not participate last year). The Ministry of Culture will add one more event to its list and their number will increase from seven to eight.

In July 2022, Tatarstan President Rustam Minnikhanov and Governor of Sverdlovsk Oblast Evgeny Kuyvashev signed an action plan for the implementation of the agreement between the regions for the period up to 2024. Promising areas for cooperation between the regions are the supply of KAMAZ automotive equipment to enterprises implementing large construction projects, as well as the organisation of supplies of household and medical refrigeration equipment POZIS.

The representative office in St. Petersburg will also add two enterprises for export, one event in the cultural sphere and four in the field of education. Besides, in 2023, it is planned to establish four ties for the import of agro-industrial products and hold four presentations from the TIDA after 2 billion rubles of investment.

Representative offices in Bashkiria and Sevastopol will also increase most of their indicators. Some of the directions will rise by one or two points. It is worth noting that after 2,5 billion rubles of last year's investments, the TIDA also intends to organise four of its presentations in neighbouring Bashkortostan, but its representatives are not going to Crimea yet. Also, this year there will be no joint work with the Ministry of Digital Development of the Republic of Tatarstan. At the same time, representative offices in the Khanty-Mansiysk Autonomous Okrug, Saratov and Nizhny Novgorod regions will not change their indicators from 2022.

Автор: Maksim Kokunin

Tatarstan

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