iConflict

Does this guy have any original thoughts?

You can also read more here from the original FT article:

�Failure to take proper account of the risks by the biggest financial companies in combination with an aggressive financial policy by the world�s biggest economy led not only to corporate losses,� Mr Medvedev told the St Petersburg Economic Forum, a showcase for Russia�s growing economic clout.

�The majority of people on the planet, unfortunately, have become poorer. And that is noticeable not only in the economies of poorly-developed countries but in the economies of the most advanced states.�

The new Russian president�s comments echoed in milder form and in the economic sphere the criticisms by his predecessor, Vladimir Putin, of US attempts to dominate world affairs. They were made to thousands of delegates at an event Russia has aggressively promoted in recent years to the point where it rivals the World Economic Forum in Davos in size and its pulling power for senior global executives.

Mr Medvedev said the turmoil provoked by the subprime crisis had exposed the inadequacy of US-dominated international financial institutions to regulate properly today�s complex financial markets.

�The inconsistency of the USA�s formal role in the world economic system with its real capabilities was one of the central reasons for the current crisis,� he said. �However large the American market is and however reliable the American financial system, it is not capable of substituting for global commodity and financial markets.�

Mr Medvedev added that it was an �illusion that one country, even the most powerful, can act as a global government�.

Carlos Gutierrez, the US commerce secretary who spoke at the forum, said the US had not engaged in �economic egoism� and was a strong believer in free trade.

�Globalisation is in the national interest,� he added.

Mr Medvedev repeated calls made by Mr Putin at the same event last year for a reform of financial institutions so they properly reflected the weight of powerful emerging markets. And he said Russia could help resolve today�s crisis, noting its recent economic history of decline in the 1990s followed by nine years of recovery meant it had largely avoided the problems of more developed economies.

He called for promotion of Moscow as a financial centre, development of the rouble as a reserve currency, and for acceptance of investment overseas by Russia�s emerging corporate heavyweights. He said such investment was �neither speculative nor aggressive�.

He proposed Russia should host an international conference of heads of financial companies and leading financial analysts to tackle problems in global markets, which he suggested might become an annual event.

�Russia today is a global player,� Mr Medvedev said. �And understanding our responsibility for the fate of the world, we want to take part in the formation of new rules of the game, though not because of often-cited �imperial ambitions� but because we have the appropriate capabilities and resources�.

Some executives said the forum showed Russia was once again becoming a leading economic power.