From June 14 to 17, 2023 in St. Petersburg will be held one of the largest and most important business events of the year - St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF). The Forum has been held annually since 1997, and since 2005 it has been held under the auspices of the President of the Russian Federation, who always tries to visit the venue of the Forum and take part in its work.
This year's SPIEF will be themed "Sovereign Development is the Foundation for a Just World. Let us unite our efforts for the sake of future generations". Contrary to the growing confrontation between Russia and European countries and the United States in recent years, the forum still gathers guests from many countries of the world, and in the world press the event is called "Russian Davos".
SPIEF 2023 Participants
Despite being under heavy sanctions pressure, the Russian economy is still of great interest. Having decided to respond to the global demand for equitable distribution of resources and to move away from the unipolar model to de facto independence in the context of globalism, Russia is attracting numerous interested businessmen and politicians to the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum.
In 2022 about 14 thousand guests from 130 countries visited the Forum - it was during the escalation of the Russian-Ukrainian conflict, when the world financial centers tightened sanctions against our country. This year, a variety of participants will be given the opportunity to speak at SPIEF. The organizers sought to maximize the geographic diversity of the topics discussed and debated. The Asia-Pacific region, Africa, and Latin America will all be represented. Bilateral business events will be held and participants from India, China and the EAEU will be invited.
Cuban Prime Minister Manuel Marrero Cruz is scheduled to attend, and Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva was invited to participate. There will be a special place reserved for the representatives of the United Arab Emirates. The UAE is now an important trade hub for Russia, through which the domestic business is actively looking for new potential partners to replace the traditional ones from Europe and the United States. Despite mutual disagreements over the OPEC+ deal, Russia's position in the Persian Gulf region is expected to be strengthened.
SPIEF-2023 program
By tradition, the plenary session of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum in 2023 will be addressed by Russian President Vladimir Putin. Press secretary of the head of state Dmitry Peskov told journalists that Putin's speech is an important part of the event "for the world of economy, politics, trade and economic landmarks of Russia."
At a time when Europeans and Americans are actively canceling everything related to Russia, Moscow is not abandoning its plans to take the lead in global development. The participants of the Forum will discuss the development of the Russian economy in the light of current realities, the technological sovereignty of the Russian economy, the emphasis on social priorities in domestic policy, the development of the labor market and its trends, as well as issues of the world economy in the era of global changes. To present all the opportunities and prospects of Russia, the organizers of the forum set out. The SPIEF program will feature leading domestic technology and financial companies, while the first day of the forum will traditionally be devoted entirely to Russian small and medium-sized businesses.
Consideration will also be given to global economic projects: the Eurasian Economic Union and the BRICS bloc are among them. Those attending are going to have much to discuss. We should not forget that the main goal of the Forum for decades has been to establish new business ties that would allow Russia to demonstrate its economic stability even under the pressure of sanctions.
The discussion panels at the SPIEF-2023 will be divided into six blocks of sessions.
· "The building of technological sovereignty"
· "Saving the people and quality of life are the main priority".
· "Labor market: Responding to New Challenges".
· "World Economy at the Global Turning Point".
· "Russian economy: From Adaptation to Growth"
· "Business Dialog"
As part of the Forum's business program, more than 150 panels have been announced. The Russian economy dominates the discussions. In second place is the block on the global economy with 37 panels, followed a little behind in third place by discussions on technological sovereignty. Seventeen panels focus on the economy and 14 on the labor market. Meetings with representatives of foreign delegations are held on six panels of the International Economic Forum.
Here are the names of some of the panels:
· "Return to Russia: compatriots' potential for regional development"
· "From brain drain to brain gain: Why Europeans are choosing Russia?"
· "De-dollarizing: the Future of Money"
· "The era of cultural sovereignty: Challenges for the Media Industry"
· "Back to the Future or Forward to the Past?"
· "Digital Dictatorship vs. Digital Sovereignty: Problems, Risks, Opportunities"
· "Multipolarity and connectivity as a new paradigm for international trade"
At SPIEF, six sessions of international dialog are announced: Russia-Kyrgyzstan, EAEU-ASEAN, Russia-China, Russia-UAE, Russia-Latin America, and Russia-India. Delegations from the Commonwealth of Independent States, Iran, India, China and Mongolia have confirmed their participation in the Forum.
More detailed information about the SPIEF-2023 program can be found on the official website of the Forum: https://forumspb.com.
Cultural events to be held during the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum
On Tuesday, June 13, the cultural program of the Forum will begin in the northern capital. In particular, it includes the "St. Petersburg Seasons" festival with excursions to the Faberge Museum, the Central Park of Culture and Leisure, the Pavlovsky Palace, the Manege, the "Russia - My History" park, the Russian Museum, the Museum of the Arctic and Antarctic, the Gatchina Palace, the Priory Palace, the State Sports Museum.
Classical music concerts will be held in the Philharmonic Hall and the Myasnikov Palace, and a gala concert with opera and ballet stars will be held in the Mikhailovsky Theatre. On the last day of the Forum, its participants will be able to visit the musical, sports and gastronomic festival "Sails of Brasov" in the Museum and Historical Park "Fortress Island", where the headliner will be the band "Diskoteka Avaria".
The "Soul of Russia" festival will be held for the participants during the forum. Outside of the business program, a three-day "Grapes" thematic platform is planned, featuring winemaking tastings and discussions. A free concert will take place in the Palace Square, which will be attended by everyone interested. The headliners will be the bands "Chizh & Co" and "Django".
Special floral arrangements will be placed along the roads leading to the Forum in Moscow, Petrodvorets and Pushkin Districts of St. Petersburg. Gazaniums, zinnias and antirrinums will be planted at the intersection of Vitebsky Avenue, a flower garden with a hedge of spireas and begonias will be created at the Moscow Gate, and many flowers will be planted in the green areas along Moscow Avenue, on Victory Square and along the Pulkovskoye Highway to the Airport.
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