Once again, Vladimir Putin intends to use this four-day meeting to demonstrate to the world that the Russian economy – despite unprecedented sanctions – still finds trading partners.
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Turn to the East and the Global South
This year's forum program clearly reflects the new geopolitical architecture that Moscow has chosen. The place of European investors and American CEOs was eventually taken by delegations from Asia, Africa, Latin America and the Middle East.
As described by Reuters, the main topic of the International Economic Forum in Saint Petersburg will be economic growth. Participants are likely to discuss strategies including shifting the workforce to faster-growing sectors and promoting AI-based digital platforms in e-commerce and banking. Russian authorities also hope for an increase in consumer demand.
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Putin's speech under the scrutiny of analysts
The traditional and most important point of the program will be the Friday speech of the President of Russia. Analysts expect Vladimir Putin to present upbeat macroeconomic indicators, convincing domestic and international public opinion that Russia's defense industry and import substitution programs are driving economic growth.
However, experts will listen carefully to the dictator's words, looking for signals about further war plans, the level of inflation that Russian society is struggling with, and the degree of Russia's economic dependence on China, which has become the main recipient of Russian energy resources.
