Russian Leader Outlines Global Finance Reform Plan

Dmitry Medvedev

MOSCOW (Reuters) -- Russian President Dmitry Medvedev will tell a summit on the financial crisis in Washington next month that the health of the world economy should no longer be reliant solely on the United States, he has said.

Medvedev, who is preparing to take part in the November 15 summit of the 20 leading industrial and developing economies, said the new global financial system he was proposing should be formalized in an international pact.

"We need to reform the current financial system [to encourage] rational, motivated, and balanced behavior by players," local news agencies quoted Medvedev as telling officials at his Gorky residence outside Moscow.

"The new financial system should have common sources based on many global financial centers and many reserve currencies," he was quoted as saying.

Russian officials see lax regulation and a breakneck pursuit of profits in the United States as the main cause of the global financial crisis.

The Kremlin, which has ambitions to play a greater role on the world stage, sees the crisis as an opportunity to establish Russia as a major player in any new financial system that takes shape after the crisis.

Medvedev said he would propose to the summit that the world economy reduce its reliance on the U.S. dollar as the main reserve currency.

Russia is seeking support for its plan from other major developing countries. Earlier this week, Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao sided with the Kremlin on the issue after talks in Moscow.

Medvedev said the plan he will present in Washington also included working out global rules for risk management.

"They should be based on a harmonized system, not like the one we have now when those who use the rules of continental Europe feel unhappy about the Anglo-Saxon model," he said. "We need common, formalized rules that will be used without allowances for national rules," he said.

"The building of the new system should be carried out on the basis of new conventions," Medvedev said. "For that we will need an international accord."