MOSCOW, July 8 (Xinhuanet) -- Russia boasts political and economicstability in spite of investors' doubts over Russia's business environment in the light of the legal probe into the oil giant Yukos, German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder said here Thursday.

¡¡¡¡"Business in Germany has great confidence in the political and economic stability in Russia," said Schroeder during talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin, Interfax news agency reported.

    Russia's largest oil exporter Yukos is facing a multi-billion-dollar back taxes bill that could bankrupt the company. The year-long legal campaign against Yukos -- seen by some as a Kremlin-inspired political move against its former chief executive MikhailKhodorkovsky -- has greatly shaken Russia's stock market and cast doubts over the country's economic policies.

    Schroeder arrived in Moscow Thursday afternoon for a brief working visit mainly focusing on bilateral economic relations.

    Putin and Schroeder will attend a round-table meeting with leading business executives from both countries during the German chancellor's one-day visit, said Sergei Prikhodko, deputy directorof the presidential office.

    Interfax cited an unnamed Kremlin source as saying that the twocountries are making joint efforts to intensify investment and improve production cooperation, mainly in the high-tech and science-intensive industries.

    Germany is Russia's main foreign trading partner, accounting for some 10 percent of Russia's foreign trade and about 18 percentthe capital invested in Russia. Official figures show that the bilateral trade volume reached 18.0 billion US dollars last year.

    The two leaders will also discuss cooperation on international affairs, including issues concerning the United Nations Security Council and other world organizations, and global issues such as the Middle East, Afghanistan and relations between Russia and the European Union.

    This is Schroeder's second visit to Russia this year following his April trip when he became the first western leader to meet Putin after the Russian president was re-elected in March.

    Russia and Germany have nurtured a close relationship particularly last year when Putin, Schroeder and French President Jacques Chirac jointly opposed the US-led war on Iraq. Enditem