Russian Industrial Policy Formation on the Basis of Innovative Priorities

The article is devoted to the innovative foundations of industrial policy adequate to the conditions of modern Russia. Industrial policy is considered as the most important tool for managing the structure of the national economy, capable of ensuring the rapid development of high-tech, innovative industries. This understanding of industrial policy reflects current trends indicating a growing complexity of ideas about the role of the state in economic development and methods of direct regulatory influence on the processes of structural changes in the economy. The paper provides various definitions of industrial policy and considers the features of its horizontal and vertical models. The author notes a narrow interpretation of this concept in Russian legislation which does not take into account the need for a balanced development of the economy and the industrial policy impact on the growth of population welfare and innovative development. On the basis of the position of the Russian expert community, the author analyses the main characteristics of the Russian industrial policy concept and highlights key obstacles to its implementation which include structural problems of the national economy. It is emphasized that the limited development of prospective high-tech and knowledge-intensive industries, accompanied by an increase in production in traditional raw material sectors, can in the foreseeable future lead to the loss of its global competitive position by the Russian economy and may jeopardize the task of ensuring the long-term sustainable social and economic development of the country. This requires a rethinking of existing approaches to the industrial policy development in order to strengthen its innovative orientation. Based on the results of the presented research, the author concludes that it is necessary to form a multicomponent industrial policy, and formulates key guidelines for the activation and development of the domestic innovation sphere.