Russia, by hosting the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF), demonstrates its resilience and prosperity despite the sanctions imposed by many countries. This perspective was shared by American political scientist and analyst John Kavulich in comments for TASS.
Kavulich, who is the president of the US-Cuba Trade and Economic Council, expressed his impressions of the forum: “This is my first experience. It strikes me with its grandiosity, physical enormity, and the creativity of the exhibition halls. The technologies used by [the] Roscongress Foundation are impressive."
"Since 2014, and more importantly since 2022, the SPIEF has posed a challenge to those states that have imposed sanctions against Russia's commercial, economic, financial, political, and military sectors,” Kavulich said. “The SPIEF announces that Russia is surviving, thriving, and not conceding. The SPIEF is like the Superbowl for business in Russia."
However, Kavulich acknowledged the significant impact of sanctions on the Russian Federation’s people, public, and private sectors. “Sanctions have had consequences and have limited the potential scope of SPIEF,” he noted.
Kavulich emphasized that the fact that the SPIEF is taking place demonstrates that Russia is not closed off from the world. He observed that, although the level of representation from some delegations is lower this year compared to last year, the forum continues to operate actively. He mentioned meeting representatives from Venezuela and Cuba at the forum.
The St. Petersburg International Economic Forum takes place from June 5 to 8. The forum’s agenda includes meetings of SMEs, creative business events, SPIEF Youth Day, and forums on "Drug Safety," "SPIEF Academy," and "SPIEF Junior," organized by the Roscongress Foundation.
GSV "Russia - Islamic World"
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Based on TASS materials