First Deputy Prime Minister Sergei Ivanov, a potential Kremlin favorite to succeed President Vladimir Putin next year, said that Russia would transform into a high-technology and industrial powerhouse, and enter the top five world economies by 2020.

The showcase of the gathering was a multibillion-dollar deal for flag-carrier Aeroflot to buy passenger jets from U.S. company Boeing, an agreement that appeared to have stalled last year amid deepening disputes between Moscow and Washington.

The Japan Times Weekly: June 16, 2007
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