WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — Representatives of the US administration will participate in the upcoming St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF) next week, Gonchar told Sputnik.
"As far as we know, the US administration will be represented at the forum in St. Petersburg," Gonchar said.
Gonchar also said that the current US administration puts no pressure on American companies wishing to take part in the event.
"We have not heard about "administrative pressure" on US businesses [this year], which used to be practiced by the former US administration regarding their own entrepreneurs in the context of the SPIEF," Gonchar said.
State Department spokesperson John Kirby then said that the US businesses participating in the SPIEF were sending a poor message about accepting Russia’s actions, and that the US government has communicated its Russia policy to the American business community.
Nevertheless, some 60 representatives of US corporations, including Exxon, Google, Boeing, and Citigroup, attended the forum in 2016, according to Gonchar.
Relations between Russia and the United States deteriorated in 2014, when Washington and its allies accused Moscow of fueling the Ukrainian crisis and imposed several rounds of sanctions. The restrictions targeted Russia's banking, energy and defense sectors.
SPIEF is one of Russia's major business and economic events. The 21st annual forum is scheduled to kick off its 3-day run on June 1. So far, ministers from 26 countries have confirmed their participation, while the total number of participants is estimated at over 5,000.
