Regional cooperation is an efficient instrument to overcome the consequences of the global financial crisis, declared on Friday Moldova's Prime Minister Zinaida Greceanyi at the opening of the 42nd CIS Economic Council, held for the first time in Chisinau. Some of the mechanisms devised to curb the effects of the crisis launched at the previous meetings of the Council proved effective. The next step is to make better use of the existing potential: the free trade regime, the removed barriers in the path of trade between our countries, stated Greceanyi. Igor Dodon, Moldova's Senior Deputy Prime Minister, informed the attendees about the economic situation in Moldova, in particular about the anti-crisis measures launched by the government in a short and long-run, meant to support the activity of the real sector, particularly of exporters and small and mid-sized enterprises, by offering access to financing. Sergey Lebedev, chairman of the CIS Executive Committee, briefed the members of the convention on the anti-crisis measures devised at the summit of CIS heads of state, held in May in the Kazakh capital, Astana, measures which were later presented to the G8 summit in London. An anti-crisis program based on these proposals, which will be updated, will be presented in November in Yalta for consideration by the CIS member countries.