TALLINN, Estonia (AP) — President Vladimir Putin touted Russia’s prospects at the country’s main international economic forum on Friday despite heavy international sanctions being imposed over the war in Ukraine.
Western officials and investors gave a wide berth to this year’s International Economic Forum in St. Petersburg, which began on Wednesday and will last through Saturday. For decades, the gathering has been Russia’s premier event for attracting foreign capital, and is sometimes compared to the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.
The Kremlin banned journalists from “unfriendly” countries from reporting on the trial. Moscow has given this designation to numerous countries that have sanctioned Russia for its invasion of Ukraine, including the United States, Canada, members of the European Union, and Australia.
Official data did not provide any information on the participating foreign companies, but the program of more than 100 panel discussions showed that the clear majority of the speakers came from Russia.
“We did not go down the path of self-isolation. On the contrary,” Putin said at the forum’s plenary session. “We have expanded contacts with reliable and responsible partners in the countries and regions that today serve as the engine and driver of the global economy. I would like to emphasize once again: these are the markets of the future; Everyone clearly understands it.”
While one of the sessions featured in the program touted Russia as a “global tech hub,” descriptions from other panels tacitly acknowledged Moscow’s economic exclusion since its troops invaded Ukraine nearly 16 months ago.
Putin also vehemently defended the deployment of Russian troops in Ukraine and reiterated his unsubstantiated claim that the Ukrainian government is a neo-Nazi regime, despite President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s Jewish roots.
“My Jewish friends say that Zelenskyy is not a Jew but a disgrace to the Jewish people,” Putin said, although some Jewish organizations have praised Zelenskyy.
Putin confirmed that Russia had deployed its first batch of tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus, a plan previously announced, but expressed an ambiguous assessment of Russia’s willingness to use them.
“Nuclear weapons are created to ensure our security in the broadest sense of the word and the existence of the Russian state. But first of all, we don’t have such a need,” Putin said.
But he added: “Extreme means can be used when the statehood of Russia is threatened. In that case, we will certainly use all the forces and means at the disposal of the Russian state.”
Putin also dismissed the possibility of reducing Russia’s nuclear arsenal, laughing lightly while resorting to a vulgar remark: “We have more such weapons than NATO countries.” You know about this, and we’re constantly being persuaded to start negotiations on cuts . To hell with them, you know what our people say.”
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