Eastern Economic Forum: Top Achievements and Key Moments
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Russia's Eastern Economic Forum wrapped up on Friday after three days of speeches, discussions, business negotiations and economic and geopolitical strategy sessions. Here's a summary of the event's top moments and most important achievements.
258 agreements worth a whopping 5.4 trillion rubles (over $59.7 billion) were signed at the Eastern Economic Forum in Vladivostok this week.
The forum was attended by some 7,000 guests from 75 countries, from high-level officials and business people, to journalists and commentators, including numerous Sputnik contributors.
Major new agreements included plans to build a large new chemical complex in Komi Republic, a new timber processing complex in Sakhalin, and measures to attract scientific and engineering talent in the framework of Russky Innovation Science and Technology Center under the auspices of the Far Eastern Federal University.
Russian deputy prime minister and presidential envoy to the Far Eastern Federal District Yuri Trutnev pointed to an array of instructions made by President Putin at the forum aimed at speeding up regional development, from preferential mortgage loans to the expansion of the VEB.RF public-private partnership initiative, new resources for Far Eastern and Arctic cities, energy projects and measures to attract additional investment.
Russia Ready to Help Build New International System Reflecting Interests of Global Majority
“President Putin emphasized global cooperation, [that] Russia is ready to cooperate to establish a multipolar world order which reflects justice for a majority of countries,” Indonesian military and security expert Dr. Connie Rahakundini Bakrie told Sputnik, summarizing her impressions of President Putin’s speech at this year’s Eastern Economic Forum, and the forum in general.
The panel discussion, which included a conversation on security issues, the threat of terrorism, efforts by some countries to destabilize others, the Ukrainian crisis, the nuclear threat, energy security and other issues demonstrated that the forum was about economics, but also “very related to security,” Bakrie said.
In general, the forum highlighted Russia’s commitment to taking relations with Asia-Pacific region to a new level, the observer said.
“The most important thing for the Asia-Pacific is technology and science, because we are a little bit weak on that position. In President Putin’s speech yesterday, he really underlined that Russia will play a very big part in building science and technology together [with Asian countries, ed.], especially in the nuclear aspect of energy security,” Bakrie said.
When it comes to technological security and sovereignty, Russia-Asia Pacific partnerships could do for the issue what US-led initiatives have aimed to do via AUKUS and QUAD – providing “military industry, high technology, surveillance systems, things like that to balance the Indo-Pacific,” according to the observer.
“Last but not least, we have to be very powerful in the sea as well – how to make ships, how to strengthen our navy, how to face the underwater war in the future.This is something that we in the Indo-Pacific, especially Indonesia, are looking forward to have relations and a deep connection with Russia,” Bakrie emphasized.
Bakrie was also impressed by the Russian Far East, saying it was her first time visiting the region, and that she was “surprised that the Far East’s development is so advanced. I see that the development of the Far East is very serious, especially when President Putin mentioned that in the last ten years, 25,000 manufacturing, infrastructure, technology and education projects were built in that area.”
Brightest Moments
The EEF showed off the beauty and diversity of the Russian Far East and its inhabitants, featuring an open-air exhibition celebrating the achievements, culture, customs, and cuisine of local peoples, and highlighting Russia’s plans to take advantage of its unique position to turn the Far East into a driver for economic growth from eastern Russia through the entire Asia-Pacific region. The latter effort included the Russia-ASEAN Business Dialogue.
President Putin’s headlining speech naturally garnered the most attention, with the Russian leader highlighting the Far East’s position as a driver for growth and a key component of Moscow’s economic and geopolitical pivot to Asia and the Global South. “Our Far Eastern regions provide a direct gateway to these promising and developing markets and allow us to overcome the barriers that some Western elites are trying to impose on the world,” Putin said.
The president commented on an array of other issues, from the Northern Sea Route to Ukraine, the future of AI in medicine, energy politics and even the US presidential campaign.
Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim was also in attendance, highlighting Malaysia’s ambitions to join BRICS+ and touting the bloc as a key means for Global South nations to “contain the onslaught of other richer industrialized countries.”
Chinese Vice President Han Zheng also spoke at the event, pointing to China’s status as a leading trade partner and investor in the Russian Far East. “We are ready, together with the Russian side and guided by key agreements reached at the highest level, to accelerate interconnectedness, both in cross-border infrastructure and the harmonization of rules and standards, to increase the scale and quality of cooperation, to strengthen the foundation for the long-term sustainable development of Sino-Russian relations in the new era, to contribute to ensuring prosperity and stability in the region and around the world,” Han said.
The development of the Russian Far East will be “one of the great economic adventures of the 21st century,” and one which will profit “not only Russia, but a great part of Asia as well,” veteran international affairs observer Pepe Escobar told Sputnik from the EEF’s sidelines, highlighting its participants’ role in the creation of a new, multipolar world order.
