President Clinton and Russian President Boris Yeltsen are meeting in Moscow, discussing Russia's poor economy, failing banking system and devalued currency.
A University of Kansas economics professor and associate director of KU's Institute for Public Policy and Business Research, is currently in Moscow and is available to discuss Russia's economy on a first-hand basis.
Mohamed A. El-Hodiri, professor of economics, African and African-American studies and Russian and Eastern European studies, is currently living in Moscow developing research and teaching. He began working with the Duma, or lower house of the Russian Parliament, in 1994 on economic-related issues. He has served as chief economist for the Russian Parliament Team's financial restructuring project.
His thoughts on the Russian economy and its financial problems?
"The banking system is totally irrelevant to the Russian economy because 95 percent of the dealings -- of the transactions in the Russian economy -- are done without money," he said. "It's barter. Simple, primitive barter."
Available to the media via telephone and email, El-Hodiri is willing to comment on the current economic situation in Russia. Other key points made by El-Hodiri are that
-- The Russian people blame much of their economic troubles on American economists, who have given them what they consider bad advice.
-- The Russians followed what he calls "American textbook advice" when they recently devalued the ruble, adding that he believes the devaluation "was by no stretch of the imagination necessary or needed."
-- "If you know that the stock market represents only 1 percent of the Russian economy, then you say 'What the heck? Who cares about the stock market?' The stock market is going to go down. The banking system is going to be insolvent. And I'm saying it doesn't matter."
For contact information for Mohamed El-Hodiri in Moscow, please call Howard Hill, KU University Relations at (785) 864-8854, [email protected] or Dann Hayes, KU University Relations at (785) 864-8855, [email protected].
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