Classification of international S&T links in Russia and diversity of partner countries

Several elements distinguish R&D partnerships with commercial objectives from those with noncommercial goals. The commercial category includes S&T com-ponents of direct foreign investments; the execution by Russian organizations of applied R&D for foreign customers; investments in R&D by foreign companies;

export and import of R&D-intensive products; foreign sales and purchases of S&T

intangibles rendering S&T services such as patents, licenses, and know-how; and the leasing of R&D installations and equipment. The common factor in these di-verse transactions is the search for profits by both domestic and foreign participants.

The noncommercial category includes joint nonprofit research projects; the exchange of S&T information at international exhibitions, fairs, conferences, con-gresses, symposia, seminars, and courses; exchange of specialists and students;

publication of S&T results in books and periodicals; and S&T assistance in aid pro-grams. Profit is not the objective in these activities. Most activities are supported by national governments, international organizations, or philanthropic foundations, and seek to provide good will, to achieve prestige, or to serve the public interest.

Another distinction is between activities aimed at the commercialization of completed developments and those directed at obtaining new S&T results. There is also a distinction between activities to create new products or processes em-bodying the results of R&D and activities to achieve intangible knowledge, be it R&D services or patents. R&D contacts may be implemented through direct links between partner institutions or in the framework of intergovernmental agreements, both bilateral or multilateral. Such classifications are certainly not exhaustive, but nevertheless help to systematize the variety of current international R&D links in Russia.

Another way of classifying international S&T activity is by the country in-volved. There are several distinct groups:

G-7 and smaller industrialized countries with highly developed technologies.

Countries in the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) whose S&T activity since the collapse of the USSR has been artificially isolated from Russia.

Countries from the former CMEA with technological bases similar to Rus-sia’s (Hungary, Poland, the Czech Republic, and the Slovak Republic); these countries are influenced by their past interactions with Russia.

Newly industrialized countries of Asia that are approaching the economic level of the most developed countries.

Large developing economies including China, India, and Brazil, which have had success in some R&D high-technology sectors, but which are confronted with difficult problems of commercialization.

Some states in Latin America, Asia, and Africa (Argentina, Mexico, South Africa, Egypt, Turkey, and others) that have created an R&D base focused on technologies for mining and processing natural resources; in this respect they are similar to Russia.

Oil-exporting countries (Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and so on) that use receipts from natural-resources exports to introduce new technologies.

S&T transactions with particular countries are influenced by past bilateral relations and geographic proximity. Transactions with G-7 countries and with highly developed smaller European nations are catalysts in the transition to a more innovative economy. These nations are the technological leaders, and by joining the train of the countries with extensive international R&D links, Russia can more quickly move toward increasing the competitiveness of its economy. Nevertheless, given Russia’s long isolation from the world community and the considerable technological lag in the majority of civilian sectors, attaining competitiveness

vis-`a-vis these countries will be a lengthy process.

Russia’s role in the S&T activities of the CIS merits special attention. Chances are good that in the coming years Russia will be a major source of technology for CIS member countries. To facilitate relations with CIS countries the financial and legal details of the transfer of S&T results must be worked out. Other aspects of Russia’s S&T policy with CIS countries include maintenance or restoration of relations between research institutes, exchange of S&T information, mutual certification of diplomas and certificates, coordination of patenting and licensing activities, and guarantees of access to scientific installations in other states.

Russia may have some competitive advantages in former CMEA countries owing to collaborations prior to 1990. Researchers and managers in these countries know their Russian counterparts, and this may secure business and research ties.

Consumers and businesses in these countries are familiar with Russian products, and in the past there were common standards that should facilitate future sales of some products.

Some R&D cooperation has already been restored with East European partners.

For example, the Kaluga Road Repair and Mechanical Plant, in cooperation with the “Roads Mechanization, Prague” joint-stock company, manufactures state-of-the-art machinery for Russian railroads, based on Czech developments and know-how. These machines are 2.5–3 times lower in price than comparable Austrian products (Ekonomika i Zhizn, 1995). In the field of biotechnology, the Inbio joint venture, based on cooperation between the Russian Institute for Albumen Synthesis and the University of Sofia (Bulgaria), has developed a procedure for processing microorganisms to obtain biologically active compounds for medicine and foodstuff.

Cooperation is developing with both new and traditional Asian partners. The Center for Physical Instrument-building of the Institute of General Physics is de-veloping an industrial laser with the financing, equipment, and materials provided by the Korean Institute of Science and Technology. In the Republic of Korea, a company specializing in imports of Russian technologies has been established with state funding and private capital. On the basis of the Bach Institute of Biochemistry and the Vietnam Institute of Tropical Medicine, a laboratory has been established

to develop fermentation technologies for Vietnam’s food industry as well as soil microorganisms and regulators of plant growth. The Skochinsky Institute of Min-ing and the Central Research Coal Institute of China are cooperatMin-ing in a project to provide the Chinese market with Russian developments in cleaning and drifting combines, cutting tools, hydrotransport, and underground coal gasification. An important condition for increasing S&T cooperation with the Asian countries is exchange of information. The Russian House for International S&T Cooperation has joined the computer networks of the UN Asian-Pacific Center on Technology Transfer to facilitate information exchange with Asian countries.

Russia has attempted to achieve more contacts with countries and regions that are second in line in the world S&T arena. Business in these countries, as a rule, is riskier than business with industrialized countries, yet Russia may confront less competition in these areas than in industrialized countries.