OREANDA-NEWS. May 26, 2011. As part of the official meeting between the President of the Russian Federation Dmitry Medvedev and the President of the Republic of Austria Heinz Fischer, in the Kremlin the Federal Antimonopoly Service (FAS Russia) and Austrian Federal Competition Authority had a ceremony of signing the Cooperation Agreement in the field of competition policy, reported the press-centre of FAS Russia.

On behalf of FAS Russia the Agreement was signed by the Head of FAS Igor Artemyev, on behalf of the Austrian side – by Director General of Austrian Federal Competition Authority Theodor Thanner.

The Cooperation Agreement with Austrian Federal Competition Authority is the second, after the Memorandum of Understanding between FAS Russia and Directorate General on Competition of the European Commission, weighty interdepartmental document signed by the FAS Russia in 2011.

The Cooperation Agreement specifies in detail the mechanisms of cooperation between competition authorities of the two countries towards investigation of violations of the antimonopoly law and control over economic concentration.

Earlier cooperation between Russia and Austrian competition bodies took place on the basis of the Memorandum of Understanding in the field of competition policy, signed between the two agencies in September 2009 in Kazan, Russia, under the framework of which the parties held leadership meetings, exchanged experience and informational materials on the issues of competition policy and enforcement.

Currently, as part of bilateral cooperation the antimonopoly bodies of Russia and Austria are discussing the main areas of activities of the joint Working Group for analysis of oil and oil products pricing.

Austrian Federal Competition Authority is also actively involved in the work of the Interstate Council for Antimonopoly Policy of the CIS member-states.