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The Carlton Hotel in Cannes is used to being in the limelight. Once a year this is where Hollywood stars and starlets walk the red carpet at the annual Film Festival. And back in January 1922 it was here where the Allied governments agreed to temporarily postpone German reparation payments due to the German economic crisis. Last week, the spotlights were turned on once again in Cannes' most luxurious hotel, this time though with a more modest aim.

It was on the eve of the EU-Russian summit held in Nice last week that some of the most influential industrialists from Europe and Russia came together for their tenth Round Table conference. This year, the conference was clearly set against the background of the international financial crisis and so the President of the Russian Federation, Dimitry Medvedev, on his way to Nice and afterwards to Washington for the G20 meeting, took the time to address the industry representatives of East and West. The only way to address "this global challenge," Medvedev said, was by "enhancing the value and the efficiency of our cooperation."

But the discussions at the Round Table were not only about financial troubleshooting, talk was also about innovation and "tapping unused potential." In a special session moderated by Stefan Wagstyl, Editor of the Financial Times Eastern Europe Office, the °ÄÃÅÁùºÏ²Ê¸ßÊÖ Principal Deputy Director-General Norbert Holtkamp presented the °ÄÃÅÁùºÏ²Ê¸ßÊÖ Project as an outstanding example of international collaboration. "With its in-kind contributions, the sharing of intellectual property rights, °ÄÃÅÁùºÏ²Ê¸ßÊÖ is a perfect example for innovation across borders," Holtkamp summarized during his talk.

The EU-Russian Round Table is an annual meeting of business leaders established in 1997 on the initiative of the EU-Russia Summit. It is co-chaired by Nils Andersen, chief executive of Moller-Maersk, the Danish transport group, and Anatoly Chubais, head of Rusnano, the Russian government's nanotechnology enterprise. Its main objective is to provide a permanent forum for businesspeople to present joint recommendations to the European Commission and the Russian Government with regard to business and investment conditions and promotion of industrial cooperation.

Other keynote speakers at this year's Round Table included the European Union's Vice President and Commissioner for Enterprise and Industry, Gunther Verheugen, and the Russian Federation's Minister for Industry and Trade, Victor Khristenko.