29th St Petersburg International Economic Forum Conference 2026: A Great Success for Russia I
Dr. Syed Mehboob
Economic and Political Analyst
http//: www.thenewslark.com
Despite all efforts to isolate Russia, due to far-sighted and balanced policies of the Russian leadership, Russia is advancing in diplomatic, social, political, defense, and economic fronts. Feeling the International scenario is transforming, a big change and power is shifting from the West to the East, and the world is becoming multi-polar, Eurasian-centric. More and more countries are now shaking hands with Russia. 29th St. Petersburg International Economic Forum's success is self-explanatory.
St. Petersburg International Forum ( SPIEF-2026) is a platform for dialogue between states, businesses, and the expert community, where practical solutions promoting sustainable growth and strengthening international cooperation is formulated. The St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF) is a unique event in the world of business and economics. SPIEF has been held since 1997, and since 2006, it has been held under the auspices of the President of the Russian Federation, Vladimir Putin, who has also attended each event. Over the last 24 years, the Forum has become a leading global platform for members of the business community to meet and discuss the key economic issues facing Russia, emerging markets, and the world as a whole. The 2025 forum results demonstrated the event's importance: delegations from 144 countries and regions participated, 1,116 contracts worth over 6.5 trillion rubles were signed, with special attention to advanced technologies, infrastructure development, energy, environmental protection, and international cooperation.
The Recongress International Cooperation Area has wrapped up its work at the 29th St. Petersburg International Economic Forum. The Cooperation Area hosted eighteen thematic events and more than one hundred bilateral meetings and signed more than thirty new cooperation agreements, providing partners attending the Forum from Russia, Asia, Africa, the Middle East, and the Western Hemisphere with an effective opportunity to engage in international dialogue. This year’s Roscongress International Cooperation Area featured partner stands, meeting rooms, an open lounge, a presentation area, and a dedicated TV BRICS studio. Partnering with the Area were the Russia–ASEAN Business Council, the Russian-Thai Business Council, the TV BRICS International Media Network, and a joint stand uniting the Tanzania Investment and Special Economic Zones Authority (TISEZA), the Tanzania Tourism Board (TTB), the Tanzania Trade Development Authority (TanTrade), and Air Tanzania.
The Roscongress International Cooperation Area at SPIEF 2026 featured stands from the Russia–ASEAN Business Council, the Russian-Thai Business Council, the TV BRICS International Media Network, and a joint Tanzanian business stand. Next to them were national stands for Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, and the SPIEF 2026 guest country, Saudi Arabia, which further proves that Russia is open to equitable dialogue and that SPIEF is exactly the place where it is put to practical use. The Roscongress International Cooperation Area hosted eighteen business events in the form of thematic dialogues and presentations on a wide range of topics (joint investment, industrial transformation, human capital development, cooperation within the EAEU, issues affecting Africa, cooperation between Russia, ASEAN countries, and China, and cultural initiatives, among others), cooperation agreement signing ceremonies, and industry-specific B2B meetings. The Roscongress International Cooperation Area drew special attention to Russia’s regions, promoting their economic and investment potential to the international community.
The Roscongress International Cooperation Area business events attracted speakers and participants from Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, China, India, Cameroon, Côte d'Ivoire, Mauritania, Tanzania, Germany, Italy, and the USA, to name just a few.
The Russian-German Chamber of Commerce officially opened its new office on 3 June with a ceremony moderated by Chamber Chairman of the Board Matthias Schepp. The event was attended by Chairman of the Board, CEO of the Roscongress Foundation Alexander Stuglev, Deputy Minister of Economic Development of the Russian Federation Denis Tyupyshev, and Managing Director of the Department of International Bilateral Cooperation of the Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs Anna Solovyova. The event was a testament to the German business community’s abiding interest in the Russian market in the face of a complicated geopolitical situation. The Roscongress International Cooperation Area’s youth agenda at SPIEF 2026 manifested itself in two exclusive TED Talks for participants of the SPIEF Academy and Point Junior projects delivered by American actor, film producer, screenwriter, film director, and Special Representative of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation for Russian-American Humanitarian Relations and Shared Cultural and Historical Heritage Steven Seagal and American actor, film producer, and Studio Mao President Stephen Mao.
The Roscongress Foundation signed more than thirty cooperation agreements at the Roscongress International Cooperation Area with Russian and international business associations, chambers of commerce, educational institutions, and development institutes as well as Russian regions. A highlight came in the signing of an agreement between the Roscongress Foundation and the Tanzania Investment and Special Economic Zones Authority (TISEZA) as part of the Russia–Tanzania Business Dialogue, attended by Tanzanian President Samia Suluhu Hassan. The Roscongress International Cooperation Area at SPIEF 2026 also hosted a special ceremony decorating the Roscongress Foundation with Roskachestvo’s first-ever Event Standard Certificate in recognition of the exacting quality of the Foundation’s convention and exhibition activities.
A TV BRICS studio was opened in the Roscongress International Cooperation Area throughout the Forum, recording more than twenty-five interviews with SPIEF 2026 participants, including First Deputy Chairman of the Cabinet of Ministers of the Kyrgyz Republic Daniyar Amangeldiev, the First Deputy Chairman of the Management Board of Sberbank Alexander Vedyakhin, GITIS Rector Grigory Zaslavsky, Secretary General of the Gas Exporting Countries Forum Philip Mshelbila, Executive Director of the APEC Secretariat Eduardo Pedrosa, the Coordinating Minister of Infrastructure and Regional Development of Indonesia Agus Harimurti Yudhoyono and others.
Partners of the Roscongress International Cooperation Area were active throughout the Forum, holding negotiations and project presentations, introducing guests to promising opportunities for cooperation, and successfully promoting joint initiatives. The open lounge hosted planned and spontaneous business meetings for visitors from all over the world. More than a hundred business meetings were held in the Roscongress International Cooperation Area in all. The Roscongress International Cooperation Area also shone a light on the issues facing small and medium-sized businesses globally and hosted a meeting for Russian and international SMEs with approximately sixty participants from Russia, the UAE, China, India, Côte d’Ivoire, and Brazil. There were negotiations in the six sectors of agriculture, food, medicine and pharmaceuticals, technology, and artificial intelligence. Tours of the SPIEF 2026 exhibition space were organized for SME delegations, including foreign SMEs and the Minister of Economy and Tourism of the UAE, Abdulla bin Touq Al Marri.
Government officials and representatives of international organizations and the business community who visited the Roscongress International Cooperation Area at SPIEF 2026 included Zim Trade CEO Allan Majuru, Zimbabwean Minister of Women Affairs, Community, Small and Medium Enterprises Development Monica Mutsvangwa, Minister of Energy and Power Development of Zimbabwe July Moyo, Chair of the APEC 2026 Senior Officials’ Meeting Chen Xu, Secretary General of OPEC Haitham Al Ghais, APEC Secretariat Executive Director Eduardo Pedrosa, Secretary General of the Gas Exporting Countries Forum Philip Mshelbila, Director of the Department for Partnership with Africa of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs Tatyana Dovgalenko, Minister of Economy and Development of the Islamic Republic of Mauritania Abdallah O. Souleymane O. Cheikh-Sidia, and Minister of Foreign Affairs and East African Cooperation of the United Republic of Tanzania Mahmoud Thabit Kombo, among others. ( Continued)
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