This is the sixth conference organized by the ICN since the association was founded in 2001. Aiming to improve international cooperation in promoting fair competition and enforcing antitrust laws, the body now incorporates most of the world's antitrust agencies.
Addressing the gathering, Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Fradkov reiterated the government's commitment to protecting economic freedom and providing equal opportunities for competition.
"We realize that our international competitiveness is inseparably linked to domestic competitiveness, so the state will continue efforts to consolidate and protect economic freedoms... and to provide equal competition opportunities for all economic agents."
Fradkov said Russia had made significant progress in recent years toward creating a regulatory framework in antitrust and competition policies, specifically through the introduction of a new competition law and of land and water resources codes, as well as tough antitrust enforcement measures targeting civil servants.
"We can say that a regulatory base for competition policy has nearly been established in Russia," he said, adding that the steady growth rates demonstrated by the Russian economy in the past few years were indicative of the government's progress in promoting demonopolization and fair competition.
The 6th ICN conference will run in Moscow through Friday.
