Krasnodar, 10 December – Yug Times. The Days of Sweden were held in Krasnodar on November 26-28. The Yug Times has asked Ambassador of Sweden to Russia Peter Ericson to recount about the level of cooperation between our two countries and the results of his visit to Krasnodar region.
Q.: How would you assess the results of the Days of Sweden in Krasnodar region?
A.: In my opinion, all events were a success. Our delegation had fruitful meetings with Governor Veniamin Kondratiev and Krasnodar Mayor Yevgeni Pervyshov. Following the seminar “Twelve Swedish ideas for Krasnodar region: how to build the future, relying on the existing resources,” where our businessmen informed about the newest technological solutions and their practical application in the sphere of formation of modern urban infrastructure, resource-conscious technologies, and prospective planning, the Swedish entrepreneurs struck up relations with their Kuban colleagues. We hope to see the results of their cooperation in the near future.
Q.: How to stimulate the development of small and midsize businesses is a popular discussion topic in Russia. What about Sweden?
A.: There are no subsidies [in Sweden]. The government tries to create such business climate so that it would be simple and easy to open a private business. We don’t have such notion as ‘bureaucratic barriers’. Our profit taxes are relatively low compared with other European countries, but the income taxes are quite high.
Q.: Many Swedish brands are very popular worldwide, like IKEA, H&M, Electrolux, Ericsson, Volvo, and many others. Do any new companies of that level appear [in Sweden]?
A.: We are interested in appearance of new creative business ideas and new enterprises in Sweden - and this process has been occurring over the last ten years. Stockholm is now the second largest seat of the offices of the world’s biggest IT companies, after the US Silicon Valley. For instance, such globally renowned companies as the musical service Spotify and Mojang AB, the developer of the popular game Minecraft, [are located there]. The stock exchange value of these companies amounts to a billion dollars at the least.
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