ST. PETERSBURG, June 18. /TASS/. Representatives of all the countries designated as unfriendly in Russia have participated in the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF), Anton Kobyakov, an advisor to the Russian president and the SPIEF organizing committee’s executive secretary, told reporters on Saturday.

"Among those taking part [in SPIEF] were also representatives of all, as we call them now, unfriendly countries. Of all without exception," he said. "In 2019, if we talk about Americans, there were 600 people. This year it is ten times less."

Kobyakov pointed out that SPIEF 2022 had been attended by about 14,000 people, representatives from 130 countries, including Russia. Of those, 79 countries sent official representatives.

The St. Petersburg International Economic Forum organized by the Roscongress Foundation is running from June 15 to 18. This year’s forum is dubbed: ‘New Opportunities in a New World’. The SME Forum, the Creative Business Forum, the Drug Security Forum, the SPIEF Junior Dialogue and SPIEF Sport Week are also going to be part of the SPIEF event. TASS serves as the event’s official photo hosting agency and the information partner.