The Council on Competitiveness signs Memorandum of Understanding with Russian Competitiveness Organizations

The Council on Competitiveness welcomed delegates from OPORA Russia and the Eurasia Competitiveness Institute to Washington on Friday, May 20 to sign a Memorandum of Understanding. The Memorandum establishes a foundation and framework for the application of the Council’s model for bilateral engagement and dialogue to the U.S.-Russia economic relationship.

“The climate for U.S.-Russia partnership is now opportune as Russia is actively engaged in diversifying its economy and building its innovation capability,” said Council President and CEO Deborah Wince-Smith while delivering the ceremony’s opening remarks. In 2010, the Russian government announced its goal of catalyzing a high-tech cluster in the model of Silicon Valley to attract the nation’s robust talent pool to develop new products and services. “The potential for mutually reinforcing and beneficial partnerships between our countries – and between the nations’ technology leaders – ought to be the cornerstone of our work together,” Wince-Smith noted.

The Council’s Global Innovation Initiative convenes senior leadership from industry, government and academia of the United States and its leading partners to secure mutually reinforcing bilateral partnerships that enhance the innovation ecosystems of both nations and address global grand challenges of the 21st century. Through expansive action in Brazil beginning in 2005 – two Innovation Summits and eleven Innovation Learning Laboratories hosted in both nations – the Council has developed a new and unique model for bilateral engagement.

The Council recognizes the criticality of a robust relationship with Russia and the compatibility of OPORA and Eurasia Competitiveness Institute with its objectives. Already emerging from the MOU signing ceremony and surrounding meetings between the competitiveness councils are several areas of engagement for the United States and Russia, including agriculture, energy, national security and technology.

The Council will work with its Russian partners in the coming months to organize U.S.-Russia Innovation Learning Laboratories for the beginning of 2012.