国际英语新闻：Russia to invite foreign capital to modernize economy

MOSCOW, Sept. 24 (Xinhua) -- The Russian government was unlikely to succeed in modernizing the economy without considerable foreign investment, First Deputy Prime Minister Igor Shuvalov told the State Duma on Friday.

"We should pay paramount attention to attracting capital to Russia for modernization because it is difficult to do it with our own funds," the RIA Novosti news agency quoted Shuvalov as saying.

Shuvalov said while the sector has demonstrated healthy growth, private capital has been fleeing the country.

"Investment capital growth stands at 2.8 percent, which is not enough for modernization," he said.

Shuvalov said the Russian economy would reach its pre-crisis levels in 2012 "unless we face some uNPRedictable developments in the global economy and natural disasters."

He said the government would spend 295 billion rubles (9.5 billion U.S. dollars) in 2010 for anti-crisis stabilization.

According to the Economic Development Ministry, the Gross Domestic Product of Russia was expected to rise 4 percent in 2010, 4.2 percent in 2011, and 3.9 percent in 2012.

Shuvalov also discussed accession talks between Moscow and the World Trade Organization. He told the Duma that negotiations were approaching the final stage, and would be finished in the coming weeks.