⚡️SPIEF 2025 business program architecture published

“Shared Values: The Foundation of Growth in a Multipolar World” has been chosen as the main theme of the 28th St. Petersburg International Economic Forum.

The business programme has been structured around four key thematic pillars:
🔹 "Development Economy: Ensuring Growth", covering topics related to the global and Russian economy;
🔹 "Technology: Pursuing Leadership";
🔹 "The Living Environment";
🔹 “The Individual in a New World”.

The programme will also include sector-specific and international events that have already proven to be essential gathering points for the professional community. Among them are the SCO and BRICS Business Forums, B20 Forum, SME Forum, Creative Industries Forum, and ‘Ensuring Drug Security’ Russian Pharmaceutical Forum.

🌍The traditional format of business dialogues with representatives from China, India, Africa, Latin America, the Middle East, ASEAN, the CIS, and the EAEU will support the expansion of bilateral and multilateral ties, showcase investment projects, and explore industrial and scientific cooperation opportunities.

@RoscongressDirect

China to Strengthen Contacts With South Africa Within BRICS Amid Trump's Tariffs

In addition to BRICS, Chinese Minister of Commerce Wang Wentao and his South African counterpart Parks Tau agreed to "fully engage the G20," in which South Africa acts as the rotating presiding party, the Chinese Ministry of Commerce stated.

The parties also confirmed their mutual intention to promote Chinese-African trade and economic cooperation.

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🎙️Interview of Russia’s Ambassador to Sweden Sergey Belyaev with SwebbTV (April 12, 2025)

Key points:

#RussiaSweden

🔹 We have had communication with Sweden for more than a thousand years. And the Russian Embassy in Stockholm was one of the first Russian missions abroad. And of course we had different periods of time. But we managed to have relations and to keep open channels of communication.

🔹 Finland and Sweden joined NATO. It's a reality. And the issue is that now the decision about peace of war do not belong to Helsinki and Stockholm. And that's why the security of these countries are not only in their hands. And of course we will analyze this. Of course there will be steps, also military steps, preparing to different, as you imagine, scenarios. But I do not see the situation when we will demand that Sweden should went out of NATO. It's speculation. Russia has no intention to invade, for example, Gotland. But researchers and journalists in Sweden develop different scenarios how it can happen. And then they begin to believe themselves that Russia is threatening Sweden.

🔹 You should not feel nervous. The case is that during the whole history of mankind, it's better to improve your security by political and diplomatic means than to prepare to war.

#BalticSea

🔹In the Baltic Sea, for years, we developed international cooperation to achieve the safety of shipments.

🔹 My hope is that sometime we will be able to restore cooperation. It is very difficult to do now after a very deep lack of confidence between Europe and the Russian Federation. I suppose that it will be very difficult if possible at all to restore it. But at least we should remember that our disputes, our different opinions should not lead to confrontation.

#MultipolarWorld

🔹 Our politics is developing very much towards Asia, Africa, and Latin America. BRICS is developing very rapidly. We have now 11 countries. And many countries are willing to join. And now this so-called G7 represents only 30% of global GDP. And BRICS represents 38%.

🔹We really have very close relations of cooperation with China, it's really strategic, Our trade with China is now more than $230 billion in our match.And for example, the Chinese are very interested in developing cooperation in the Arctic areas, Russia is one of the best countries in this field.

#NATO

🔹There were a lot of countries that tried to invade Russia, and we have a great experience, unfortunately, of such confrontation. When there was unification of Germany, and the Soviet Union gave its permission to support this unification, because we were promised that NATO will not enlarge. But then we know what happened. NATO was coming closer and closer to the Russian borders.

🔹 And of course, when we see that the military alliance is enlarging and coming actually to our borders, we have to think why it happens. And we speak about this with partners from the West, beginning with year 2007, when it was this famous speech of President Putin, that security should be comprehensive, that no-one should build his security on the security of the others.

🔹 It's rather funny to see how Baltic states try to prove that they will be the next ones. Russia has no intention to invade in Baltic states. No intention to invade in Finland or Sweden.Baltic states joined NATO many years before. Sweden has joined now. And of course we have to analyze what does it mean from the point of view of our security and how we should react.But I exclude the possibility that Russia will invade to some neighbour country.We are not interested in wars as a country or as people.

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