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By Nikola Mikovic
When Russian Tsar Peter the Great founded St. Petersburg in 1703, his ambition was to create a "window to Europe." Given the current geopolitical realities, Russia's second-largest city now seems to serve as a window to the Global South.
Indeed, over the past three years, the main guests at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF) have been representatives of non-Western nations. After what the Kremlin describes as the collective West imposed sanctions on the Russian Federation, Moscow began actively developing bilateral ties with African, Asian and Latin American countries. This year, the prominent event in St. Petersburg, being held from June 18 to 21, will be yet another opportunity for Russia to strengthen economic relations with the Global South.
At the same time, the forum will allow business and political delegations from 92 countries to engage in meaningful dialogue and explore new opportunities for cooperation. Strengthening multipolarity, the global economy business program, diversification, industrial and financial sovereignty, and people in the new world are some of the topics expected to be discussed.
The summit will, therefore, serve as a vital platform for exchanging ideas, addressing global challenges and expanding trade and investment ties. It will also help the Kremlin demonstrate that it might be isolated from the West, but not from the rest of the world.
Nowhere is this more evident than in what Russia considers its near neighbors. On June 14, authorities in Kazakhstan announced that Russian nuclear energy giant Rosatom will lead the construction of the country's first nuclear power plant. Meanwhile, the China National Nuclear Corporation has been selected to lead a separate consortium to build another nuclear facility in the energy-rich nation.
Given that energy has traditionally been the main driver of Russia's foreign policy, Rosatom's business in Kazakhstan demonstrates that Moscow will continue to orient its geopolitical vector eastward. Still, the fact that Robert Agee, president of the American Chamber of Commerce in Russia, is scheduled to moderate the panel discussion on Russia-U.S. business relations, suggests that Moscow sees the forum as an opportunity to attempt to improve economic ties with Washington.
Previously, on May 28, for the first time in a long while, United States official representatives participated in a forum under the auspices of Russia's Security Council, held in Moscow. All that, however, does not mean that the Kremlin aims to downplay its ties with the Global South. The list of participants at the SPIEF makes that clear.
In 2023, Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune was the main speaker at the SPIEF. The previous year, Bolivian President Luis Alberto Arce Catacora and Zimbabwean President Emmerson Dambudzo Mnangagwa were among the prominent attendees. This year, Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto will take center stage in St. Petersburg, where the forum will be held under the theme "Shared Values: The Foundation of Growth in a Multipolar World."
Interestingly enough, Subianto arrives in Russia three weeks after Indonesian and Chinese officials met in Beijing, where they agreed to jointly resist unilateralism and work together to build a shared home in the Asia-Pacific. "The world is currently facing a surge of unilateralism and acts of trade bullying that harm the interests of all countries," Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi stressed.
The upcoming SPIEF – not only signaling Russia's geopolitical intentions but also highlighting a broader reordering of global economic relations – will reveal whether other Global South representatives share Beijing's and Jakarta's views. But given that the role of the Global South in the world economy continues to grow – especially Asia, which for decades has been the global epicenter of manufacturing – it is no surprise that this year's forum will feature multiple bilateral business meetings between key economic players such as China, Vietnam, Kazakhstan, Thailand and Bahrain. These sessions undoubtedly aim to deepen trade cooperation and address global challenges.
The established format for business discussions with representatives from Asia, Africa, Latin America, the Middle East and regional organizations – including ASEAN, the Organization of Asia-Pacific News Agencies, the Commonwealth of Independent States and the Eurasian Economic Union – is expected to support the expansion of bilateral and multilateral ties, help countries work together, find places to invest money and team up in business and science.
The SPIEF's broad network of bilateral dialogues almost certainly has the capacity to help rebuild regional economic resilience through multilateral cooperation, especially amid rising anti-globalization pressures. What the countries participating in this year's event seem to have in common is a growing interest in exploring alternatives to the established global framework, where unilateralism has become the norm. From their perspective, forums like the SPIEF offer a glimpse into the emerging architecture of international cooperation.
That is why they repeatedly seek to form a multipolar world, one defined not by division, but by dialogue, diversity and shared economic opportunity. But bringing this vision to life will be a big challenge.
Nikola Mikovic, a special commentator on current affairs for CGTN, is a freelance journalist in Serbia, covering mostly Russian, Ukrainian and Belarusian foreign policy issues.
