The St Petersburg International Economic Forum will start on Thursday, and it will be one of its most significant conferences after last year's lockdowns began.
Organizers of the event want a business-as-usual atmosphere. However, the pandemic is still very much present in the travel restrictions, safety concerns, and increased prices compared to the last forum in 2019. As a result, the forum is a more scaled-back event, reported Business Times.
Speakers expected at the Russian Forum
The schedule on Friday is the main event. Russian President Vladimir Putin will hold court with other world leaders and takes questions from the audience.
Other world leaders expected to join the event through a video call are the Emir of Qatar Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani and Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz. Kurtz is at home and is under investigation for lying to lawmakers.
Putin faces criticism
Putin is facing growing marginalization as a consequence of some of the worst tensions with the US and Europe since the Cold War. Some of the issues levied against him are cyberassaults, espionage, and Russia's support for Belarus in hijacking a commercial plane to capture a journalist critical of the administration.
Putin is also criticized for a sweeping political crackdown against his critics, especially the imprisonment of opposition leader Alexei Navalny.
US President Joe Biden previously stated that on the June 16 summit with Putin in Geneva, he would like to discuss human rights with Putin.
Political tensions have crossed over into the economy as years of foreign restrictions reflect in stunted economic growth a decrease in earnings. Despite these challenges, Russia is generally perceived to be mending well from the pandemic's economic impact. Russian President Vladimir Putin hosting the Flagship Investor Forum could give the economy a boost.
Aside from sanctions and the state of relationships with other countries, another factor that affects Russia's economy is the instability of the ruble, said the Association of European Businesses members to Bloomberg Quint.
The high costs of the forum
High prices, estimated as much as three times the cost of the previous event, make it prohibitive for some to attend. One of them is Anastasia Tatulova, the owner of a Moscow coffee chain. She said she would be honored to be asked to speak on a panel until she was billed 960,000 roubles (S$17,262) for the privilege, she wrote on Facebook.
Tatulova posted on social media last Tuesday that she got a form that permitted her to register for free without any justification or explanation when her story was reported up by the local press.
Russia's decision to hold the conference, which is billed as the Kremlin's answer to the World Economic Forum, came regardless of the fact that Russia is one of the countries worst hit by the pandemic. New infections are also on the rise.
Russian President Vladimir Putin heading the Flagship Investor forum in an attempt to drum up economic activity to show his country is normal again..
