MOSCOW — Restriction on foreign participation in Gazprom's authorized capital are to be lifted this year, German Gref, Russia's economy minister, has stated, delivering a speech to US Chamber of Commerce representatives. He added that otherwise, the developments around Rosneft would have been pointless.

In the meantime, he observed that the removal of restrictions is currently being discussed, but the viewpoint of President Vladimir Putin, presidential administration chief Dmitry Medvedev, Prime Minister Mikhail Fradkov and industry and energy minister Viktor Khristenko is already well-known. Gref also stressed that the market for Gapzrom's shares has to be liberalized this year, which implies that limitations on foreign participation have to be lifted.