CHUBAIS COMPLAINS ABOUT RUSSIA’S EXCLUSION.

Russian first deputy prime minister Anatoly Chubais was upbeat when he arrived in Hong Kong over the weekend to attend the annual gatherings of the IMF and the World Bank, which are taking place at the same time as a meeting of G-7 finance ministers. Chubais said the Russian government remains "extremely dissatisfied" with its tax-collection performance but predicted that, if the government’s new Tax Code is adopted by the Duma, the Russian budget will be in surplus by the year 2000. Central Bank chairman Sergei Dubinin said he was gratified to note that, whereas in the past the G-7 leaders wanted to know what was happening in Russia, this time they were asking about how to invest there; he said this was a positive development. However, Chubais expressed dissatisfaction that some discussions over important financial issues took place without Russian participation. He said he hoped that in future meetings Russia will be accepted as a full participant in all discussions. (RTR, September 19; Itar-Tass, September 20)

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