Jokowi Returns to Jakarta After S. Korea, Russia Trip

Jakarta Globe, Eko Prasetyo, May 21, 2016

President Joko Widodo welcomed by Vice President Jusuf Kalla at Halim
Perdanakusuma Airport, East Jakarta, Saturday (21/05). After an official visit
to South Korea and Russia, Jokowi has secured partnership agreements
and investment commitments to Indonesia. (State Palace Press Photo/Laily) 

Jakarta. After a week of meetings in South Korea and Russia, President Joko Widodo returned to Jakarta on Saturday (21/05) boasting commitments to bilateral and regional partnerships.

The five day trip resulted in a variety of agreements with South Korean and Russian private business, as well as among Asean.

"In the visit to Korea, there was high enthusiasm from South Korean businessmen. The resulting deals have reached around $18 billion," Foreign Minster Retno Marsudi said in a statement at Halim Perdanakusuma Airport, East Jakarta.

At least seven agreements were signed in South Korea, including in the maritime, creative industry, sports, special economic regions and corruption eradication sectors.

In Russia, Joko met with President Vladimir Putin to enhance partnerships in palm exports, fisheries and investment diversification.

"All the potential will be followed up," Retno said, adding that Russia has also committed to constructing a $13 billion oil refinery. “Also, there were five agreements on defense, fishing, culture, national archive and foreign ministry archives.”

During the Asean-Russia Summit, Joko said partnerships should be focused on energy, small-medium enterprises and connectivity, while maintaining peace and security in the region.

Joko met with the Vietnamese and Singaporean Prime Ministers to discuss the realization of the 2018 $10 billion trade target and continuing maritime delimitations.

President Joko Widodo inaugurated as Seoul's honorary citizen, during his state
visit to the South Korean capital on Tuesday (17/05). (State Palace Press Photo/Intan)

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Jokowi, Putin Sign Five Agreements to Strengthen Bilateral Ties

Jakarta Globe, Edo Karensa, May 19, 2016

Indonesian President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo and Russian President Vladimir Putin
 signed five agreements to strengthen bilateral ties between the two countries on
Wednesday (18/05).(Reuters Photo/Kirill Kudryavtsev) 

Jakarta. Indonesian President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo and Russian President Vladimir Putin have signed five agreements to strengthen bilateral ties between the two countries on Wednesday (18/05).

The agreements were signed by both leaders during a bilateral meeting at President Putin's official residence in the resort city of Sochi in Southern Russia.

They include bilateral cooperations on defense, national and foreign affairs archives, culture as well as joint efforts to curb illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing activities.

“President Putin and I have agreed to strengthen our defense cooperation. We also discussed further cooperations on technology transfer, joint production, training and education,” Jokowi said, as quoted by the State Palace website.

Jokowi also said Indonesia and Russia will continue existing cooperation to combat terrorism and boost information exchanges in intelligent operations.

“We've had good coordination between the two countries to prevent terror threats, and now we have agreed to strengthen defense institutions in both countries,” Putin said.

In culture and education affairs, President Putin promised to grant 100 scholarships to Indonesian students next year, which will be a great addition to the 100 Indonesians already studying in Rusia.

The Indonesian president is visiting Rusia to attend the Association of Southeast Asian Nations-Russia Summit 2016 on May 17-20, also in Sochi. He has invited President Putin to make a return visit to Indonesia.

Russia Ready to Help, Promises Cooperation With Indonesia

Top Russian politician meets with Vice President Jusuf Kalla to boost ties

Jakarta Globe, Novy Lumanauw, Nov 12, 2014

Valentina I. Matviyenko, the speaker of Russia’s upper house of parliament,
 shaking hands with House of Representatives Speaker Setya Novanto at the
legislative complex Senayan, Jakarta, on Tuesday. (Antara Photo/Ismar Patrizki)

Jakarta. Vice President Jusuf Kalla and a high-level representative from the Russian government met on Wednesday to discuss bilateral trade, politics and infrastructure development in Indonesia.

Valentina I. Matviyenko, a close ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin and speaker of Russia’s upper house of parliament, met with Kalla at the vice president’s office, where the pair spoke about boosting trade and improving economic ties between the two countries.

Russia and Indonesia have set a target for bilateral trade to reach $5 billion in value, Matviyenko said at a press conference after the meeting, although an exact time frame was not spelled out. In 2012 trade reached $3.4 billion, according to Hatta Rajasa, Indonesia’s coordinating minister for economic affairs under former president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.

At a time when Indonesia is looking to attract investment and improve ailing infrastructure, Matviyenko said the Russian government could help, especially with trains, smelters and power plants.

She also said her country could help make President Joko Widodo’s vision of turning Indonesia into a maritime axis for the Asia-Pacific area a reality. Matviyenko said Russia was prepared help Indonesia build maritime infrastructure, such as ports.

Russia — which has battled militants from Muslim Chechnya for more than two decades since the collapse of the Soviet Union — could also help Indonesia fight homegrown and international terrorism, she said.

Kalla said the promise of cooperation would be followed up and it was important to include Russian businesses in discussions about developing Indonesia’s resources.

“We’ve had a long [and] good relationship with Russia, in politics, trade and innovation,” he said.

BRICS create development bank, based in Shanghai

Yahoo – AFP, 15 July 2014

The BRICS group of emerging powers launched a $50 billion development bank Tuesday to be based in Shanghai and a $100 billion crisis contingency fund, according to a joint declaration.

The New Development Bank's first president will be from India while the board's chairman will be Brazilian, according to the declaration released at a summit in Fortaleza, Brazil.

The bank will have an initial subscribed capital of $50 billion followed by an authorized capital of $100 billion, equally shared among Brazil, Russia, China, India and South Africa.

The Contingency Reserve Arrangement will have an initial size of $100 billion and will help countries avoid "short-term liquidity pressures, promote further BRICS cooperation, strengthen the global financial safety net and complement existing international arrangements."

The bank and fund are seen as counterweights to the Western-dominated World Bank and International Monetary Fund, which BRICS nations say need more reform to give emerging nations more voting rights.

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Putin is latest Asia summit no-show to raise eyebrows

Google – AFP, 9 October 2013

Russia's President Vladimir Putin attends the leaders' declaration at the APEC 

Leaders' News Conference in Nusa Dua on the Indonesian resort island of Bali

on October 8, 2013 (Pool/AFP/File, Beawiharta)

Bandar Seri Begawan — After the US president's no-show at a pair of Asia-Pacific summits, eyebrows are being raised over Russian leader Vladimir Putin's decision to also skip one of the gatherings.

Despite coming to the region for an economic meeting in Indonesia earlier this week, Putin has passed on a subsequent East Asia summit in the sultanate of Brunei set for Friday.

It marks the third straight year that Moscow has sent a stand-in to a gathering that Russia had lobbied hard to join in 2011, raising questions over Moscow's level of commitment to the East Asia bloc.

Russia had promised "to be represented at the highest level," said Surin Pitsuwan, former secretary general of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), annual host of the East Asia summit.

"For some reason or another they have not been. That is disappointing."

US President Barack Obama cancelled a visit to Asia, including the twin leaders' meetings, due to the US government shutdown, casting doubt over his administration's planned pivot to the region.

Brunei organisers of Friday's summit -- a group of 18 nations, including Southeast Asian countries, the United States, China and Russia -- said Moscow also had informed them a week ago that Putin would not be coming.

He is instead represented in Brunei by his foreign minister Sergei Lavrov.

The United States and Russia first joined the 16-nation East Asian bloc, which centres on ASEAN, in 2011 in what analysts saw as a potential check on Chinese influence in the region.

But it is becoming increasingly clear that Russia's trade and other ties with the ASEAN bloc are too small to rate high-level interest from Moscow, said a Southeast Asian diplomat who spoke on condition of anonymity.

"It (Putin's absence) just reflects how Russia looks at ASEAN -- that it doesn't give much weight to ASEAN," said the diplomat, noting Russia has no direct stake in hot-button issues in the region such as overlapping claims in the strategic South China Sea.

"It does seem that Russia has given more premium to its relations with the APEC grouping."

APEC refers to the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation bloc spanning the region.

Just days ago at the APEC summit in Bali, Putin touted the importance of Russia's involvement in supplying energy to growing Asian markets.

A Kremlin spokesman denied that Russia had lost interest in ASEAN and the East Asia summit, but added: "Unfortunately, he (Putin) cannot attend every summit. There is a degree of priority for everything."

But Fyodor Lukyanov, chairman of the Kremlin-linked Council on Foreign and Defence Policy, said: "Putin has simply nothing to offer this summit."

"You need a really strong agenda for the president to go to such an event, especially when Russia is not a member," he said.

"But there is no such agenda, so we decided that there was no point in going there as tourists."

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APEC opens two-day summit in Bali

Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, right, shakes hands with
 Russian President Vladimir Putin after speaking during the APEC Leaders’ News
 Conference on the final day of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC)
Summit in Nusa Dua on the Indonesian resort island of Bali on October 8, 2013 as
country leaders and representatives look on. (EPA Photo)

..

Should Indonesia be the I in Brics?

BBC News, Karishma Vaswani, Jakarta, 27 March 2013

Both India and Indonesia are growing fast, but lately the smaller of the two
has seen its economy expand the fastest

Related Stories

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Entry into the Brics club is a seen as a sign of success - a statement that you have made it as an emerging economy.

When the phrase was first coined back in 2001 by Jim O'Neill from Goldman Sachs he intended it to encompass just four fast growing emerging-market countries - Brazil, Russia, India and China.

South Africa was added in 2011 - despite protestations from Mr O'Neill.

Being a part of Brics means you are instantly branded a sure bet - or at least that is the perception among investors.

Economists say the Brics make up approximately 20% of global gross domestic product (GDP), and by 2030 could possibly rival the combined economies of the G7 countries (the US, Canada, the UK, France, Germany, Italy and Japan).

But already there are concerns that the fast growing economies of the grouping are seeing some trouble ahead.

'Policy paralysis'

Take India, which once saw its economy growing at a rate of 9%, but is now suffering from "policy paralysis", caused by a combination of stalling economic reforms and political haggling, according to Ajit Ranade, chief economist with the Aditya Birla Group.

Corruption and political inefficiency are
often  cited as reasons why India's
growth rate is slower than it was

"The government has had a lot of political dramas, with corruption scandals unfolding over the last few years, and opposition parties stalling economic reform at every juncture," he says.

"But fundamentally, India's economy is still stable, its medium-term growth drivers are intact. Some policy momentum is visible these days."

The Indian government says it expects the country to grow between 6.1% and 6.7% this year, faster than in 2012, when GDP grew by 5.3%.

Middle class

The slowdown in economic growth in India lies behind the suggestion that perhaps Indonesia should be the "I" in Brics instead.

On the face of it, India and Indonesia's economies have a lot in common - certainly more than just their first initials.

Both have large and young populations in fast growing economies driven mainly by domestic consumption.

But India's economy is six or seven times the size of Indonesia's, and it has many more mouths to feed, with a population of more than 1.2 billion compared with Indonesia's 240 million.

While India has seen its economy stumble recently after many years of strong growth, Indonesia's strengths have made it the darling of international investors - although it too has also seen economic growth decline moderately.

The two nations also face many of the same problems, with their messy political systems, shoddy infrastructure in desperate need of upgrading, corruption and crippling poverty.

Open economy

One of the comments you always hear about Indonesia's potential is the rapid emergence of its affluent middle class, which is set to almost double by 2020 to 141 million people, the Boston Consulting Group forecasts, which means more than half the population would be classified as middle-income class or richer. Domestic consumption helps power the economy and attracts plenty of foreign companies into this relatively open economy.

India has a large domestic market too, but restrictions on foreign ownership make it difficult for foreign firms to get involved.

Leaders of the Brics group of emerging
market  economies are meeting in
Durban

So last year, the global cosmetics giant L'Oreal chose Indonesia when it invested some $130m (£86m) in a state-of-the-art factory just outside Jakarta to produce 700,000 products per day, ranging from whitening creams to shampoos for both the domestic market as well as for exports to neighbouring countries.

The company has also opened a research and development facility in India and now sees both markets as equally important, according to Vismay Sharma, L'Oreal's president in Indonesia, who has also worked in India.

Bricsi?

Indonesia's growing importance relative to India has done little to remove some of the real challenges for retailers and distributors doing business here, however, such as the fact that it is made up of islands.

"You can't use road or rail everywhere, so you end up using ships," says Mr Sharma.

"You end up depending on ports, and that starts to put a lot of strain on the infrastructure."

Neither India nor Indonesia have good infrastructure, and both governments have pledged to spend billions of dollars to improve it.

But such lofty ambitions do not always deliver results. Last year, a much-lauded land acquisition bill was passed in Indonesia, but it has failed in its ambition to make it easier for the government to push ahead with infrastructure projects.

Obstacles such as these have resulted in analysts dismissing the idea that India should be replaced by Indonesia in the Brics grouping.

"You can add it as a sixth Brics, perhaps, making it Bricsi," says PK Basu, regional head of Maybank in Singapore.

"But replacing India doesn't make sense from any perspective. It's the first year in the last 15 years that Indonesia's real GDP grew faster than India. There's a dynamism in the Indian economy - in manufacturing, agriculture, services - that just isn't there in Indonesia."

HS Dillon, Indonesia's special adviser on poverty alleviation, agrees.

Each nation has moved into fast-growing economy status, each taking its own path to get there, but neither country has "made it", he says, insisting that "the rate of growth means nothing without the quality of growth".

Widespread poverty is there for all to see just a few kilometres outside of Jakarta's fancy financial district, where urban slums have cropped up in many parts of the city, as migrants from other parts of the archipelago have come here to find work. India's big cities too have seen mass migration into fast-growing cities that are becoming increasingly densely packed.

The poor in both countries are prone to avoidable diseases, resulting from poor sanitation, regular flooding and a lack of affordable healthcare.

"People say all the time we are one of the largest economies in the world, we are in the G20, we are this, we are that," says Mr Dillon.

"But what," he asks, "does that mean for the poor?"

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Cyprus strikes last-minute EU bailout deal

Agreement set to involve heavy losses for wealthy investors, while those with savings under €100,000 will be spared

The Guardian, Ian Traynor in Brussels, Monday 25 March 2013

Cypriots queue at a Laiki ATM. Under the new deal the bank will be closed with
 deposits over €100,000 seized and its 'good' assets transferred to Bank of Cyprus.
Photograph: Hasan Mroue/AFP/Getty

European leaders reached an agreement with Cyprus early on Monday morning that closes down the island's second-biggest bank and inflicts huge losses on wealthy savers.

Russians would lose billions of euros under draconian terms that are aimed at preventing the Mediterranean tax haven becoming the first country forced out of the single currency.

"Herman Van Rompuy has brokered an agreement between the troika and Cyprus," said an EU source, referring to the president of the European council and Cyprus's trio of creditors: the European commission, the European Central Bank and the International Monetary Fund.

A meeting of eurozone finance ministers that started six hours late reached an agreement in the early hours of Monday morning to finalise the fine print of the deal. Savers with deposits of less than €100,000 (£85,000) would be spared but it was thought there would be heavy losses inflicted on the deposits of the wealthy.

Laiki, or Cyprus Popular Bank, is to be closed, with its good assets transferred to Bank of Cyprus, the country's biggest bank, where savers would suffer big losses in return for equity shares. Those with more than €100,000 in Laiki would also be hit hard.

Negotiations got under way amid a hardening of the stance by the IMF and Germany, which insisted that depositors must take the hit for bailing out the eurozone's latest crisis economy.

There were signs of panic in Cyprus as a €100 limit was imposed on ATM withdrawals, with more stringent capital controls to follow if the deal is finalised.

The European Central Bank had threatened to cut off funds propping up Cypriot banks on Monday, which would have precipitated the island's exit from the euro if agreement was not reached at the emergency meeting.

"The numbers have not changed. If anything they've got worse," said Wolfgang Schäuble, Germany's finance minister. He said the aims of last week's agreement to raise €5.8bn – details of which were rejected by Cyprus – had to be achieved. This time, however, savers with less than €100,000 will be spared, meaning the burden falls much more heavily on the wealthy than the 9.9% levy proposed last week for their accounts.

Germany is determined that the island deflate a bloated financial sector that exceeds the size of the Cypriot economy by a factor of seven.

"It is well known that I won't allow myself to be blackmailed by no one or nothing," said Schäuble. "I'm aware of my responsibility for the stability of the euro. If we take the wrong decisions we'll be doing the euro a great disservice," he told a German Sunday newspaper.

Russians are estimated to hold more than €20bn of the €68bn deposited in Cypriot banks. Bank of Cyprus holds €28bn in deposits although it was not clear how much of that would qualify for the "haircut". But it was clear that the losses would amount to several billion.

The Cypriot president, Nicos Anastasiades, held meetings with EU officials in Brussels before the meeting of the euro group – the 17 finance ministers of the single-currency area – which included troika representatives Christine Lagarde, head of the IMF, Mario Draghi, president of the ECB, and Olli Rehn, European commissioner for economic and monetary affairs.

Little progress was reported from the earlier meetings on resolving the stalemate over how to structure a €17bn bailout, with creditors unwilling to offer more than €10bn while expressing dissatisfaction with Cypriot proposals to supply the remainder.

The agreement outlined early on Monday came close to what Lagarde had demanded a week ago and which had been rebuffed by Anastasiades.

Over the weekend Nicosia moved on legislation to wind up Cyprus Popular Bank and introduce capital controls to try to prevent a bank run and the flight of money out of the country.

Cypriots attend Sunday service at Saint-Mamas Orthodox church in

the capital Nicosia on March 24, 2013 (AFP/File, Barbara Laborde)

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Matthew message (Channelled by Suzanne Ward, Feb 18, 2013)

"... The Rothschild faction of the Illuminati, which governed its empire from London and the Vatican, lost its media foothold along with its other powers in that part of the world. A section of the Illuminati’s Rockefeller faction, headquartered in Washington, DC, and New York City, still has influence on major media in the US as well as on Wall Street; and their lingering foothold in Congress is evident in the intransigence that has stagnated progress. .."

In this photo provided by the Vatican newspaper L'Osservatore

Romano,  cardinals attend a meeting at the Vatican, Monday,

March 4, 2013. (AP Photo/L'Osservatore Romano, ho)

Archangel Michael on the World’s Movement into the Golden Age, March 24, 2013 – Part 2/2 - New

“… GW: Shifting to events that are taking place in Europe at this point in time, it seems that the events in Europe are reaching or about to hit a breaking point of some kind. Several leaders, including Nigel Farage and allegedly Russian Prime Minister Medvedev have suggested that people should be removing their money from their accounts as the cabal may attempt a last ditch grab for money.

Now, I know, and perhaps many know, that the current system is corrupt and that there will have to be a degree of change in the current system before people will be willing to embrace the new system.

I don’t wish this question to sound alarmist to people, but is what is happening now one of the final, if not the final, straw that will help expose the banking cabal and allow the new system to be implemented? Is this new system ready? Or is it already being implemented? Or is it still only limited to preparatory work?

AAM: No, it is already underway. It is already being implemented. And yes, we do not wish to sound alarmist either, and so we also wish people to know that their resources, what they think of as their money, for those who have saved and put their faith in banking systems, they will be protected to a certain extent. So do not think that you have need to run out and remove all your monies, or that it will be completely gone. But yes, this is the beginning of a transition.

The expression of the lack of faith in particularly the European banking system causes enormous disruption, more significant perhaps than anywhere else. And so yes, it does have a domino effect, but it is not one simply shutting down [the old system] and a new system emerging. It is coming into balance with the new emerging as the old simply fades away.

Is it a last ditch effort on the part of those who have clung to the old paradigm of the 3rd, what you call the cabal? Yes, it is. But it matters not, because it is not going to work for them. Seldom are things such as this situation so black and white. There is always room for free choice and free movement and adjustment.

But in this situation it is simply evolution and expansion. And the expansion of the new, of the new paradigm, of what you think of as Fifth-Dimensional financial systems does not allow for systems that are based on greed and theft and control — and unfairness, basic unfairness, usury.

So, it is rather clearly defined. You have an expression that you use on Earth, “Out with the old.” And this is one of those situations where it is, in fact, the truth.

GW: Okay. So, along the lines of the leadership, or at least some of the leadership of what’s taking place in the financial sector globally, it has been reported that the apartment of the IMF managing director Christine Lagarde was raided last week.

Was this an attempt to expose her as part of the banking cabal, or was it an attempt to stop her from fulfilling the reforms that she is allegedly trying to bring to the international banking system?

AAM: It was an attempt to gather information and perhaps even destroy documentation that she is trying to bring forth for the reform of the financial situation. It was an unsuccessful raid.

GW: Okay. So what I’m hearing in your answer, then, is that Christine Lagarde is working for, I guess, the forces of light to bring the greater change to the IMF. Am I correct?

AAM: Yes. This one has had a real turn-around. No, we do not ever categorize individuals or groups or people as light or dark. But this one has truly committed herself to reformation.

She sees and she has the experience very clearly of knowing what does not work. And therefore she has committed her mission, her purpose to this reformation.

GW: Okay. And could the same be said about the new US Secretary of the Treasury Jack Lew? Is he on board with all the changes and working for the reformation as well with Lagarde?

AAM: He is an agent and an angel of change. He could not be simply on board. He is a moving force. ‘…‘’

Russia Asks Indonesia to Build an Instant Noodle Factory

Jakarta Globe, July 07, 2012

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Moscow. Indonesian’s Ambassador to Russia Djauhari Oratmangun said on Saturday that the Russian government asked him to help coordinate the construction of an instant noodle factory in Russia.

“It was specially requested by Russian Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin when we met,” Djauhari said. “Instant noodles are a favorite food in Russia.”

The new factory was brought up during a recent joint commission meeting between the two country's diplomats, which saw an agreement to boost economic cooperation to the tune of some $5 billion through 2014. The investment will include transportation, the mineral industry and food safety.

According to Djauhari, Russia offered to continue exporting wheat to Indonesia in exchange for Indonesia exporting larger volumes of  palm oil to Russia — and to invest in the instant noodle factory. 

“This is big opportunity for Indonesian instant noodle company because Russia has very huge population,” he said. “As I go to Indonesia, I will meet instant noodle producers and invite them to see the market potential in Russia. Instant noodle market is huge there, and the opportunity should not be wasted.”

Antara

Russia pays tribute to US budget

Pravda, 21.05.2012

There are many elementary things that recieve no attention at all, although they can be extremely important. If you take a Russian banknote in your hands, you will see that it says: "Note of the Bank of Russia." If you take a look at Soviet banknotes, you will see that they say: "State Treasury Note." It means that it is not the Russian state that makes the money that all Russians use in their everyday lives today. This is a consequence of 1991 - the time when the Soviet Union collapsed.

Modern-day bank notes are made in today's Russia on the base of the Constitution, as well as on the base of the laws about the Central Bank. The production volumes of today's banknotes in Russia are proportionate to the volume of the purchased virtual foreign currency. In other words, in order to pay, let's say, a note of 100 rubles to a cashier in a supermarket, the Russian economy has paid the United States of America the face value of this note.

If we add the structure of the Russian reserves, the general systems of balance of payments, the crediting mechanism - i.e. the elements of economic sovereignty, which Russia does not have, - then we will see that today, Russia pays nearly $200-300 billion to the US. This amount corresponds to the taxes, which Russian tax-payers pay - without customs payments.

Conditionally, every Russian citizen pays two taxes. One of them goes to the Russian budget, and the other one - in the same amount - goes to the American budget. Russia spends this money on the inflation mechanism, because this money is withdrawn from the economy. Therefore, Russia will never solve the inflation problem until it solves the problem of the Central Bank. Hungary tried to do it, for example, but was punished for it.

Russia is not alone here, of course. America defeated many countries of the world. The above is not a specific problem of Russia. That is why the USA consumes a half of the world's GDP because they collect tribute from everyone, not just Russia. 

Sergey Fyodorov

State Duma deputy

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Russia and China come bottom of bribe-paying survey

BBC News, 2 November 2011

Transparency International wants more action
to outlaw bribery

Companies from Russia and China are most likely to pay bribes when doing business abroad, a new survey suggests.The two scored worst out of 28 countries in a poll of 3,000 business executives conducted by anti-corruption group Transparency International (TI).

The Netherlands and Switzerland came top, while the UK ranked eighth, just ahead of the US and France.

Bribery was reportedly most common to win public sector works and construction contracts.

'No integrity'

"It is of particular concern that China and Russia are at the bottom of the index," said TI in its report.

"Given the increasing global presence of businesses from the countries, bribery and corruption are likely to have a substantial impact on societies in which they operate and on the ability of companies to compete fairly in these markets."

Other major developing economies came much higher up the rankings. India was 19th, while Brazil, in 14th place, was one spot ahead of Italy.

The report called for more international action to outlaw companies from paying bribes in foreign countries.

Bribe Rankings - worst offenders last

• 1. Netherlands, Switzerland 
• 3. Belgium 
• 4. Germany, Japan 
• 6. Australia, Canada 
• 8. Singapore, UK 
• 10. US 
• 11. France, Spain 
• 13. South Korea 
• 14. Brazil 
• 15. Hong Kong, Italy, Malaysia, South Africa 
• 19. India, Turkey 
• 22. Saudi Arabia 
• 23. Argentina, UAE 
• 25. Indonesia
• 26. Mexico 
• 27. China 
• 28. Russia

"G20 governments must tackle foreign bribery as a matter of urgency," said Huguette Labelle, chair of TI, who said that more resources must be dedicated to investigations and prosecutions.

Russia, which came bottom of the league, was seen by TI as a particularly challenging case.

"Unfortunately... there are no islands of integrity in Russian public and business life," said TI Russian director, Elena Panfilova.

'Cheating taxpayers'

Survey respondents were asked to say how likely companies from each of the foreign countries were to offer back-handers.

Bribe-paying was seen as much more common by businessmen from countries whose governments were also considered to have the least integrity, according to a separate "corruption perceptions" survey carried out by TI last year.

The sector most affected by bribery was public procurement - where companies compete to win contracts from governments for everything from waste collection to road building.

TI noted that the nature of public sector contracts - which are usually large, complex and involve many sub-contractors - makes it much easier to inflate costs and hide inappropriate payments.

However, TI said that paying bribes to win major infrastructure and housing projects "effectively cheats taxpayers out of their money" and can undermine safety standards.

The survey indicated that companies paid bribes almost as routinely to other businesses as they do to government officials.

The mining and the oil and gas sectors - in which Russia and China are most active - also scored low in the poll.

Agriculture was considered the least bribe-prone, while banking ranked the fourth least-corrupt out of 19 industries. 

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Demonstrators put 600 green brooms on Copacabana beach to protest 

against corruption in Brazilian politics. Photograph: Rex Features