Obama's Russia visit to bring over $1.5 bln in deals

By Simon Shuster and Dmitry Zhdannikov

MOSCOW (Reuters) - U.S. President Barack Obama's visit to Russia has seen over $1.5 billion (925 million pounds) of company deals unveiled, but a longer term step-change in business between the nations will depend on Moscow boosting the rule of law.

"We need the confidence that things are going to remain stable, that the ground rules are going to remain stable," Samuel Allen, chairman of U.S. farm machinery maker Deere. , told reporters while announcing an investment of $500 million into Russia within the next five to seven years.

"I believe in the long run that is what the (Russian) government will try to do but at this point in time things aren't as stable as we would like to see. It makes us hesitant at times," he said Monday.

The summit between Obama and Russia's president, Dmitry Medvedev, will focus on talks about cutting nuclear weapons stores, the supply of weapons to NATO forces in Afghanistan, and on creating a joint commission to improve trade relations.

A breakthrough at these talks would serve as evidence both sides want to "press the reset button" -- to use the U.S. government's phrase -- on U.S.-Russia relations and help boost bilateral trade, which stood at $36 billion last year.

Joining Deere's new investments in Russia are U.S. soft drink company PepsiCo and aircraft maker Boeing.

The Kremlin said Russian oil major LUKOIL wanted to invest in a new refinery on the eastern U.S. coast with ConocoPhillips.

"If we have success on the geopolitical side of the summit we are going to see much more investments by U.S. companies," Andrew Somers, president of the American Chamber of Commerce in Russia, told Reuters in an interview Monday.