What does this recent change tell us about Russia's economic goals for the 21st century?

Question

In recent years Russia has adopted the use of the market in many situations in order to improve the performance of its economy. This change is a drastic one for a government that has for many years refused to adopt decentralized decision making, calling it inconsistent with its political and social values. What does this recent change tell us about Russia's economic goals for the 21st century?

Answer 1

Essentially, that Russia is trying to mirror the successes of the American Economy by adopting a market system more closely oriented to America's.  The most successful (non-oil) economies in the world are market economies rather than economies focused on centralized decision making.  Russia realizes this, and is trying to play catchup.