Sponsored by the UN Development Programme (UNDP), the report by a panel of Russian experts concludes that ``by the mid-1990s, Russia could no longer be ranked among the developed states by many parameters.'' These were gross domestic product, health spending, concentration of wealth and social and regional disparities. But ``it is necessary to emphasise most definitely that the Russian state does not have today, nor will it have in the foreseeable future, financial resources sufficient for meeting all the needs of human development. Moreover, additional social commitments made by the state will disperse the scarce resources available and thus will frustrate the prospects for resolving the crisis.''

The report, the third on the Russian Federation, studies the impact of the ``super-high'' crime rate on humandevelopment. The 80-page document speaks of fertility and mortality rates, economic trends and population incomes.

Contributing to the crisis is the growing crime rate, particularly organised crime in which ``no dramatic breakthrough'' has been achieved. The report noted that births by women aged between 15 and 19 account for almost 18 percent of net fertility, a figure corresponding to the situation in Latin America. It said life expectancy for males rose in 1996 to 59.6 years and for females to 72.7, up from the ``catastrophic'' figures for 1994, when life expectancy sank to 57.6 for men and 71.2 for women.

``Unbalanced nutrition, widespread alcohol abuses, inefficiency of the health care system which fails to meet world standards, environment, outdated and harmful production technologies and standards of living on the whole -- add up to high mortality in Russia.''

Asked whether the report could have an impact on Russia's membership of forums reserved for leading industrialised nations such as theG-8, UNDP official Philippe Elghouayel said the decision to include Russia was ``political''. He said, ``The report shows even if Russia becomes an economic power in the long term, the real problems are those of social development. If they are not resolved, Russia is not viable.''