MOSCOW, September 15. /TASS/. The Russian side welcomed all countries, including unfriendly ones, to attend the Eastern Economic Forum (EEF), Russian Deputy Prime Minister, Presidential Plenipotentiary Envoy to the Far Eastern Federal District Yury Trutnev said at a press conference on Friday.
"We always enjoy seeing our neighbors at the forum. They have frequently participated in the forum, sometimes with a large delegation, sometimes with a smaller representation," he said answering a question about whether North Korea would be invited to the next forum. "There are no countries we would not invite. Even those countries that do not treat us properly are not banned from coming," he added.
Trutnev noted that sanctions have a negative impact not on Russia, but on the countries that impose them.
According to him, around 7% of investments in the Far East come from foreign companies. "In general, we have about 7% foreign investment in the Far East. <…> I think this is not bad," he said.
Trutnev stressed that around 373 agreements worth 3.8 trillion rubles ($39.5 bln) were concluded at the Eastern Economic Forum. "Some 373 agreements worth 3.8 trillion rubles were signed. We don’t say that <...> projects worth 3.8 trillion rubles will be implemented <…> we usually have the yield of around 70%," he said.
Russia’s Amur Region will attract the largest volume of investments after the EEF of 173 bln rubles ($1.8 bln), Trutnev added. In particular, an agreement with China’s SA International was signed on the sidelines of this year’s forum. The company will construct the first plant to produce port equipment in Russia in the Amur Region. At the previous forum in September 2022, 290 agreements worth 3.27 trillion rubles ($53.4 bln) were signed.
The 8th Eastern Economic Forum (EEF) was held in Vladivostok on September 10-13, 2023. The slogan for this year’s forum was: On the Path to Partnership, Peace and Prosperity. The Roscongress Foundation was the event organizer; TASS was the EEF’s general information partner.