The collapse of communist power in the Soviet Union and subsequent measures to establish a private sector have created opportunities for both foreign and domestic private capital in Russia, and the non-Russian republics of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS). This volume, which contains revised papers originally published by the Post-Soviet Business Forum at the Royal Institute for International Affairs, provides a sober, long-term assessment of investment priorities in the former Soviet Union and the problems that potential investors will encounter and their prospects for success. The contributors neither exaggerate nor underestimate the difficulties facing potential investors, many of whom have been attracted by the region's enormous wealth of natural resources.

William Butler assesses the issues involved in creating the legal structure necessary to facilitate private investment, paying particular attention to issues of ownership, investment, and company law. David Humphreys analyzes the specific problems of investment in the mining and metals industries in the CIS and the prospects for integrating these industries with the world economy. Jonathan Stern assesses the prospects for investment in the Russian oil and gas sector over the next decade. Julian Cooper addresses the lessons emerging from the conversion of the former Soviet defense industry to civilian production. Sergei Manezhev analyzes the specific problems of investment in the Russian Far East, a region that is rich in natural resources, and provides a study of the operation of free economic zones in the region. David Dyker provides an overall assessment of the prospects for investment in Russia and the CIS.

Post-Soviet Business Forum Collection