During an international investment forum held last month in Moscow, Premier Putin boldly declared: “We are going to economize every ruble of the budget in the strictest possible way!” He also said a whole bunch of other things there – with emphasis on the words, with repetitions sounding like mantras. In a press release distributed as the conference came to a close, it was indicated that: “Forum participants are going to try to determine the most attractive innovational sectors of the Russian economy for foreign capital.” And yet it is understood: these efforts are required because investors are not rushing into Russia, turned off in part because the state budget never ends up where it was promised to go.