Russia’s greatest curse is not its natural resources, as many believe, but its weak and ineffective institutions. According to the 2010-11 Global Competitiveness Report published by the World Economic Forum, Russia ranks 63rd among the 139 countries listed, primarily because of the low quality of its state institutions.
The poor quality of government institutions, large-scale corruption, excessive government intervention in the economy and corrupt courts that take their orders from state officials all create a terrible business climate and low levels of both domestic and foreign investment.
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