DUSHANBE, July 30, 2008, Asia-Plus - Russia has allocated $4 billion to nanotechnology research over the next four years, the general director of the Russian Rosnanotech state corporation said Tuesday.

"The nanotechnology initiative was announced in Russia in 2007 and it envisions financing in two directions: research in the sphere of nanotechnology, coordinated by the Kurchatov institute; and commercialization of nanotechnology projects, which the Rosnanotech corporation is responsible for," Leonid Melamed said.

He added that another $1 billion was to be spent outfitting scientific labs with modern equipment, and that the corporation''s total budget was about $5.5 billion.

Clayton Teague, who heads the U.S. National Nanotechnology Coordination Office, earlier said at a meeting with the management of Rosnanotech in Washington that each year the United States allocated an average of $1.5 billion in federal funds to nanotech projects.