MOSCOW, November 16 - RAPSI. Mikhail Barshchevsky, a renowned lawyer and the government's representative to higher courts, has been appointed as the president of the Moscow International Business Association (MIBA) at the annual MIBA meeting on Friday, RIA Novosti reports.

"Former Moscow Mayor Yuri Luzhkov previously served as the MIBA president for years," MIBA Director General Alexander Borisov said. "I met with Luzhkov. He later resigned, and afterward the association worked without an appointed leader for 1.5 years."

Barshchevsky has been elected unanimously to a two-year term.

He has already named the association's priority goals for the near future.

"The primary task for association members could be linked to the amendments of legislative and subordinate acts in Moscow and the Moscow region," Barshchevsky said.

"The association could also play a role in collectively defending investors."