Medvedev hopes Davos forum organizers feel pragmatic about Russian delegation
MOSCOW. Dec 6 (Interfax) - Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev says he hopes the organizers of the Davos forum, who have started to change their attitude to the Russian delegation, to be pragmatic.
"That [the participation of the Russian delegation] depends on the Davos organizers. As I understand it, they have started to adjust their attitude," Medvedev told five Russian television channels in an interview.
Communication is the goal of any forum, Medvedev said. "We are always happy about it and gladly do so. Our businessmen and officials have visited [Davos]. But if our business is not welcome and they call them [Russian businessmen] bad people, there is no point in attending," Medvedev said.
He invited foreign guests to the forums held by Russia in St. Petersburg, Sochi, Crimea, and Vladivostok.
"I still think that they [the Davos organizers] are pragmatic people; let's wait and see," Medvedev said.
As reported, VTB head Andrei Kostin and two other traditional Russian participants in the annual sessions of the World Economic Forum who have been blacklisted by the United States, Viktor Vekselberg and Oleg Deripaska, were notified by the organizers that they were not welcome. Medvedev said that Russia would not send an official delegation to Davos unless the organizers reconsidered their decision.