ST. PETERSBURG, June 7. /TASS/. Political scientist Sergey Karaganov will moderate the plenary session of the 2024 St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF), which will feature a panel discussion with Russian President Vladimir Putin, Presidential Spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Friday.

"We are expecting a plenary session today after two [2:00 p.m. Moscow time]," he said. "It will be moderated by Karaganov."

"[At the plenary session] President Putin will speak, two guests will speak, two presidents, the president of Bolivia and the president of Zimbabwe, with whom we had very productive talks yesterday," Peskov added.

The Russian presidential spokesman also said that US journalist Tucker Carlson was not on the list of candidates to moderate the 2024 SPIEF plenary session.

Asked by one of journalists whether Carlson’s candidacy to moderate the plenary session had been considered, Peskov replied "No."

Sergey Karaganov, 71, is one of the founders of the Valdai Club, professor emeritus, science doyen of the Department of World Economy and World Politics at the National Research University Higher School of Economics, and honorary chairman of the Presidium of the Council on Foreign and Defense Policy.

The SPIEF plenary session will take place on Friday, June 7 and is scheduled to begin at 2:00 p.m. Moscow time. Putin is expected to traditionally deliver a speech at the session and then take part in the following discussions.

The St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF) is being held on June 5-8. This year’s theme will be "The Formation of New Areas of Growth as the Cornerstone of a Multipolar World."

Scheduled events include meetings for small and medium-sized businesses, creative industries, the SPIEF Youth Day, as well as the Drug Security, SPIEF Academy and SPIEF Junior forums. SPIEF is organized by the Roscongress Foundation. TASS is the information partner of the event.